The Begining of a New Story
by Lacey York
Summary: Mitchie doesn't want to leave Camp Rock. She doesn't want to leave all the new friends she's made. What happens when Brown and Dee make a major announcement the last day of camp?
1. Saying Goodbyes

**Hey I was just thinking about what would happen if Camp Rock became a full time school and Mitchie didn't get the chance to express her feelings to Shane before he left for tour.**

"Mitchie, honey, wake up."

"Mmmm… Goomorningmom," Mitchie mumbled as she rolled out of her bed.

Today was the last day of Camp Rock. She was going home for the first time in a month and a half. Last night had been the best night of her life and she had never wanted it to end.

She had gotten on that stage and found the strength within herself. She had sung out her heart and then Shane, the Shane Gray, had sung with her. Or was it to her? She was not quite sure, but what she was sure about was that she was falling in love with the jerkiest pop star in the business.

"Get dressed we need to make breakfast and I let you sleep in as long as I dared."

"Ok. What time is it?" Mitchie asked grabbing clothing out of her already packed suitcase.

"Seven. But we have to serve breakfast in a half an hour because the bus leaves in an hour."

"Oh. I can't believe the summer is really over. I go back to school in a week… I don't want to go back…" Mitchie trailed off as she got dressed and headed out the door to the kitchens.

Mitchie took a familiar detour toward Caitlyn's cabin. She looked down deep in thought as she walked. _I can't believe it… this will be the last time I go get Caitlyn for kitchen duty. Who knows if we will even come back next year…_

Her thoughts were cut off as she ran into someone headed the other way.

"Oh sorry. Probably should have been looking where I was walking. I didn't see…"

"Yeah, well, you should watch where you're going next time," the voice said angrily.

Mitchie looked up. "You don't need to give me an attitude I said I was sorry. Just because you're the famous Shane Gray doesn't mean you can push people around."

Shane looked up from his cell phone at the sound of the voice. "Oh, Mitchie, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that…"

"Yea, you did…Whatever, I got to get Caitlyn."

Mitchie pushed past Shane, flustered and continued to Caitlyn's cabin to get her up. She climbed the steps and burst through the door.

Caitlyn's cabin was relatively empty. Lola had been her only roommate and she had left right after Final Jam the night before. Caitlyn and Mitchie had packed Caitlyn's bags last night so there was nothing in the room but a pile of suitcases.

Mitchie ran over to Caitlyn's bed and jumped on it.

"Wake up sleepy head!" Mitchie yelled pulling the pillow out from under Caitlyn's curly head.

"Five more minutes, Mommy," Caitlyn answered.

"Number one, do I look like your mother? And Number two, we needed to be in the kitchen five minutes ago."

Caitlyn slowly rose out of bed. Mitchie got up and pulled out a pair of shorts and a t-shirt for Caitlyn and threw it at her.

After Caitlyn was dressed, the girls headed to the kitchens. When they got there, Mrs. Torres put them to work making toast and filling the cereal dispensers.

Because it was the last day of camp, they were serving a light, quick breakfast so campers had time to go back to their cabins to pack the rest of their things. This gave Mitchie and Caitlyn time to find a table for their friends and exchange addresses, e-mails, MySpace addresses and phone numbers.

After breakfast, Mitchie and Caitlyn said goodbye to Barron, and Erik and headed back to the kitchen to see if Mrs. Torres needed any help packing up to find that it had already been taken care of. This gave Mitchie and Caitlyn more time to say goodbyes.

They left the kitchen and headed to the stage by the beach for the closing program. It was so sad to see everyone together for the last time that summer. No one knew what next summer would hold and if they would be returning as campers the next year.

Dee got onto the stage followed by Brown. It was odd to see that even though the summer had come to an end they had not taken the smiles off their faces that had been there all summer long.

"Hello campers," Dee said.

"Hi Dee," the campers sang back in a sadder melody than they had at the beginning of the summer when they had done this exact ritual.

"As the summer come to an end it is very sad to see you all go home. However, we have some rather exciting news for you all," Brown stated.

The campers looked at each other with anticipation. _What could possibly make camp ending something to be excited about? No one wants to leave… not even my mom._

"We are opening Camp Rock as a school! We will be specializing in music but also be giving the classes that all schools give," Dee said excitedly.

Everyone looked around. There was no way that she was telling the truth. _This is a dream…Only this morning I was wishing I didn't have to go home and now I don't have to…I'm dreaming I dreamt this up and now it's happening…how could my dream come true?_

"We will be sending flyers home with you today as you must go home for the week so that the school can be set up but don't forget to ask your parents," Brown was saying.

"We hope you can but if you can't we will miss you and hope to see you next summer. I see the bus pulling up so as one final goodbye let's sing the Camp Rock theme song," Dee said enthusiastically.

Everyone began to sing a-cappella. As the song came to a close the bus stopped near the stage. Everyone got up and began giving each other hugs. It was a very sad event but yet it had a sense of hope behind it.

Mitchie said goodbye to Caitlyn and watched her take her seat on the bus. She said goodbye to Ella and Peggy and waved as Tess's limo pulled away from camp. She stood by the bus until it began to move and then waved a final goodbye and left for her cabin.

"Mitchie," she heard from behind her.

She turned and sat Shane standing there.

"What do you want Shane?" Mitchie asked with slight attitude.

"I'm sorry. You're right I'm a jerky pop star and I have no clue how to treat people."

"I forgive you but I have to go, my mom is waiting for me so we can leave."

"Are you, are you going to give Camp Rock, the school version, a try?"

"I don't know, Shane," Mitchie said turning away from him again.

She was still slightly angry at him and was not ready to say goodbye. This was the reason she hadn't said that simple word yet.


	2. Home

**Happy New Year!!!! I was up all night so if this sucks I'm sorry. All my friends are still in bed… so I decided to treat you all to a new chapter.**

**LAST TIME**

"I don't know, Shane," Mitchie said turning away from him again.

She was still slightly angry at him and was not ready to say goodbye. This was the reason she hadn't said that simple word yet.

**NOW**

Mitchie finally made it to her cabin. She had left a very confused Shane standing on the path that led from the road to the cabins.

"Mom," she called out, "Are you ready to go? The bus left so there really isn't anyone to stick around to say goodbye to."

The truth was, as much as Mitchie didn't want to leave; the camp was not at all the same when she had no one to hang out with. It reminded her of the day she had first come to camp. She had been excited to finally be in a place she had only dreamed about but she had also been alone.

Now she was excited to be going home to see Sierra but she was alone, yet again.

Her mom came out of the bathroom. "You sure you said goodbye to everyone honey? You aren't going to get home and find out that you didn't get someone's address or phone number?"

"No, Mom, I got it covered when everyone left on the bus. Caitlyn said she'd call me at home when she got back to Texas. So I kinda want to get home to answer her call."

"Ok, sweetie… Hey I heard about the new Camp Rock High. Are you interested?"

"I didn't think you would say yes, but if this is you saying yes then I'm not going to complain!" Mitchie said with a growing smile on her face.

"I never said that Michelle! You no better than to twist my words… I'll talk to your father about it but this isn't a yes or a no. Got it?"

"Yes, but it's still a maybe," Mitchie said with hope.

"Come on; time to get into the truck, we have a long drive back," Mrs. Torres said, dragging her daughter out of the cabin only to be stopped by Brown.

"Hello, ladies," Brown said smiling, "Connie, I need to talk to you for a minute. Would you mind stepping into my office?"

"Sure. I'm glad you caught me, we were actually heading out. Mitchie, go ahead to the truck. I'll be right there."

"Ok, Mom. Bye Brown," Mitchie said smiling at him and heading to the truck.

"Mitchie!" a voice called out, "Wait up!"

Mitchie turned around to face the speaker.

"Hey," Nate said "I just wanted to say thanks for-for changing Shane. Connect 3 would be history if he hadn't heard you sing."

"Oh. Nate, that's sweet but I really didn't do anything. He'll probably be back to his normal, crabby self in a couple of weeks. It's the fresh air. It has that effect on people."

"No, Mitchie. You're wrong. Shane has gone on vacations, slept on beaches, hiked in the mountains. He has never come back like this, never."

"Well, thanks for the complement, Nate, but I don't think I deserve it."

"Ok. I won't fight you on the subject. Anyway, here's our numbers, don't be afraid to call. You did so much for Shane, let us do something for you," Nate said pulling out a piece of paper.

"Ummm… thanks," Mitchie said taking the piece of paper from his hands, "So, are you going to visit the school here this year?"

"We start a tour next week and it'll go until Christmas, but we might stop in to visit Brown and the campers…err…students. Why?"

"My mom is thinking about letting me come… don't tell anyone, but I really don't want to go home."

"I didn't want to go home after my first year either. You should have seen Jason. He was an emotional mess."

"Nate!" someone called.

"Oh. I guess I got to go. Keep in touch Mitchie," Nate said as he leaned over and gave her a light hug.

"I will. Bye, Nate," Mitchie said smiling as they broke apart.

"Nate, now!" the voice said almost annoyed.

"Tell Shane and Jason goodbye for me too, ok?"

"Ok," Nate said leaving with an encouraging glance back at Mitchie.

"Who was that I saw you talking to?" Mrs. Torres asked, sneaking up behind Mitchie.

"Oh, Mom! Don't do that. You scared me."

"I'm sorry, sweetie. So…"

"That's Nate. He's part of Connect 3. He was just saying thanks. For some reason he thinks that I changed Shane, but he didn't see the way Shane acted this morning."

"What did Shane do?"

"Nothing… just… nothing,"

"Ok. Well if you need to talk, I'll listen."

"Ok, can we drop it now?"

"Ok, ok. Let's get in the truck."

Mitchie hopped in to the truck and leaned back on her seat. Her mom started the car and they headed home.

"Honey, wake up, we're home," Mrs. Torres shook her lightly.

Mitchie woke up and looked around. She had not realized how tired she had been. About five minutes into the car ride she had drifted off to sleep. Now, five hours later, she was finally home.

She dreamily got out of the car and headed for the door. Her father was standing there with open arms. "Welcome home!" he said animatedly, pulling her into a bone crushing hug.

"Hi, Dad, it's good to see you too," Mitchie said happily coming out of her dreamy state.

"Mitchie!" she heard from behind her.

"Sierra!" she yelled back spinning around to see the familiar face.

"You're home! I am so glad to see you. We have tons to talk about. Science camp was amazing, and I met a guy."

"You met a guy? Just one all summer?" Mitchie answered sarcastically.

"Oh, you know what I mean."

"I want to hear all about it, but my mom needs help unpacking, So, I'll call you tomorrow?" Mitchie answered feeling bad that she did not have time to spend with her best friend today.

"Yea, sure, I completely understand. Call me if you get done early," Sierra said, slightly put out.

"Ok."

Sierra walked down the driveway away from the house. The telephone began to ring and Mitchie ran into the house to answer it.

"Hello?" she answered excitedly.

"Hi, is Mitchie there?" Caitlyn asked.

"Caitlyn! It's me."

"Oh, hey. So have you asked your parents about Camp Rock High yet?"

"My mom brought it up, actually. She said maybe. How about you?"

"It's just another boarding school, so my parents are cool with it."

"I didn't know you went to boarding school."

"Since I was in middle school. My parents were always traveling because of their career and they wanted me stable so I ended up at a boarding school."

"Oh. Do you like it? I mean, is it fun?"

"Yea, for the most part. My school was all girls so we did movie nights and stuff. It is actually really cool."

"Awesome, well I have to go help my mom unpack but I'll call you later, ok?

"Yep. Talk to you later."

"Ok, bye."

Mitchie got up and returned to the driveway only to find that her parents had moved everything inside while she was on the phone. She walked back inside and headed up the stairs to her room. When see opened the door she noted that everything looked exactly the same.

It was odd, but every time she went away she expected something to be different when she came back. It never was, but it was just something she thought would happen.

She walked over to her desk and found her cell phone laying face done attached to the charger. _Exactly how I left it. _

She picked it up and unpacked her new phone book with her camp friends' numbers in it. She had not brought her phone camp because Sierra would not have hers and if she needed to talk to her dad, her mom had a cell phone.

She began adding the numbers and then she came to the piece of paper she had shoved into her pocket. The one Nate had given her when they had said goodbye.


	3. Unpacking and Making a Big Desision

**Hey guys! got inspired so i wrote a whole chapter in the last 3 hours.**

**SHOUT OUTS:** **xXTDGXx****, ****Onigiiri****, leo xx, ****2myangel****, ****ersy****, ****Eloisel54****, ****brucas224****, ****TurnUpTheMusic-x****, ****xojonasbrothersxo****, ****csimiamigirl73****, ****TotallyTerriblyTaylor****, ****Kelli Lynn****, ****ChiaraJ****- thanks for reading!!!**

**LAST TIME**

She picked it up and unpacked her new phone book with her camp friends' numbers in it. She had not brought her phone camp because Sierra would not have hers and if she needed to talk to her dad; her mom had a cell phone.

She began adding the numbers and then she came to the piece of paper she had shoved into her pocket. The one Nate had given her when they had said goodbye.

**NOW**

That stupid little sheet of paper... If it had just been Nate's number it would have been less of a big deal, but seeing Shane's number in Nate's untidy handwriting, that was a different story.

Mitchie normally was not affected by boys this way. She did not have a boyfriend or anything that had ever come remotely close to it. These feelings were not something that she was used to and she did not know how to handle them.

She stared at the paper for half an hour. The only thing that stopped the staring was that her cell phone rang next to her.

"Hello," Mitchie said breaking her trance.

"Mitchie! You said you were gonna call me!" Sierra yelled through the receiver.

"Oh, sorry."

"What have you been doing? I left you like an hour ago and I know you didn't just make me leave so you could unpack."

"Sorry. I was actually putting numbers into my cell. I got… sidetracked," Mitchie said, her mind slipping back to Shane.

"Ooh, and you weren't going to tell me about him?"

"Him? Him who?"

"The guy that you're into. Come on I want to know. I've got my guy but he's not the first guy that got my attention. I mean I do like the guys from Connect 3 but I've had boyfriends before so this is so much more important!"

"Relax, Sierra. It's nothing. Nothing can happen between him and me."

"And why not? He stole you're heart and walked away? Yeah right, Mitchie I'm not falling for that."

"No. I was the one that walked away. He and I are way too different for anything to happen."

"Can you at least tell me his name before I drop it? I mean you can't drop anymore hints that you don't want to talk about it"

"Ok, his name is Shane. He went to camp a couple of summers ago and came back to visit his uncle."

"Fine. I'll drop it. So, his name is John."

"Sorry, who?"

"The new guy in my life."

"Oh, ok so where did you meet?"

"Camp. We had a mutual friend. Well, actually, his sister was my cabin roomy so she set us up."

"Aw that's cute."

"He has called me everyday since we got back from camp and he is transferring to our school because he's moving into the neighborhood. You get to meet him the first day of school!"

"Actually, umm… I need to talk to you about that…"

"What? You got a record deal that you failed to mention and you are going on tour? Because that would be awesome but very sudden."

"No… it's not quite that extreme… it's just that… I might not be coming back to Rowling High…"

"WHAT!" Sierra yelled in a panic, "Who exactly am I going to sit with at lunch and hang out with in the hall way and-"

"Sierra," Mitchie cut in, "You'll be fine if I'm not there and I'm always a phone call away. You were just saying that you and your cabin roomy are going to be at the same school and I would be a third wheel around you science geeks anyway."

"You know you wouldn't. I didn't know you were moving."

"I'm not, did I ever say I was?"

"No, but it was implied… if you're not moving where are you going? Your parents would never ship you off to a boarding school. They love you too much. Oh, no… they aren't getting a divorce are they?"

"Relax Sierra. No, they are still completely smitten with each other… it's actually kinda sick sometimes. Camp Rock is opening a music and academic school. My mom said that it was a possibility… I just don't know if I want to go…"

"Mitchie, if I'm what's stopping you, then I'm not. You're my best friend, but if you want to go to some Julliard type school… I'm not gonna stop you."

"Thanks Sierra. You're a great friend and if I go… I'm gonna miss you the most."

"Aw… don't get sappy yet you aren't leaving now."

"Yea, but if I go… I leave next Saturday."

"So, we'll make the best of this week… do all the stuff we normally do on our days off so that we have had enough of each other until you come home for winter break. Wait… did you say academics? Like a smart school?"

"No… sorry, I wasn't very clear… they are going to have regular classes like a regular school but with an emphasis on music."

Mitchie picked up the brochure that she had tucked into her address book.

"I'm looking at the brochure and it says that they will have regular and advanced classes so that students reach their full potential in all areas but that school days will be longer because there are extra classes to focus on different types of musical talent."

"That's cool… and the time zone is the same right?"

"Yea. I'll have my lap top and cell with me too so we can keep in touch."

"Good. Well, I got to go… John's calling."

"Ok. I'll talk to you later. Bye"

"Bye, Mitchie."

Mitchie ended the call and looked back at what she had been doing before the call. _That was a great distraction, but as all distractions, they end sometime or another. This is ridiculous, I'll put Shane's number in here but I probably won't use it. I'll talk to Nate and Jason but I don't have any reason to talk to Shane._

With that decided, Mitchie finished filling her phone with the numbers of her new friends.

When she finished, she took her laundry down to the wash and started the load, knowing that her mom was too exhausted from the drive home and the work that morning to do it herself.

_Mom. What am I gonna do without her when I have Tess drama? I can't just avoid everyone and go to the kitchen if she's not in there._

"Mitchie! Can you come here for a second? Your father and I have something to talk to you about."

"Ok, Mom," Mitchie said, turning on the washer and walking to the den where her mom and dad were sitting on the couch waiting for her.

"What's going on?" She asked. Their faces gave nothing away.

"Mitchie, your father and I were just talking about Camp Rock High…"

"Oh… I totally understand if you don't want me to go. I can finish high school with Sierra, just like we were planning and then I can see if I can get into a collage on a music scholarship or something."

"Mitchie, you didn't let your mother finish," her dad interrupted her rant.

"Oh, sorry, Mom."

"Well, your father and I have reached a decision…The only problem is that your father is going to have to find a place to put his business nearer to the camp…"

Mitchie looked from her mom to her dad very confused.

"Mitchie… what your mother is trying to say is…"

Just then Mitchies cell phone began to ring. She looked down to see it was a text.

_What did the rent's say? Are you going to be my roommate????- Caitlyn_

Mitchie texted a quick reply back explaining what Caitlyn had interrupted and put her phone away.

"Sorry you were saying?"

Mitchie's parents looked at each other as if trying to decide something.

**hope you liked that!!! please review!**


	4. Mitchie Umm

**Ok, so I have a little energy, ok, a lot so I'm gonna write this chapter to get rid of my hypernessness… hope it pays off and you enjoy…Reviews are welcome!**

**LAST TIME!**

"Sorry you were saying?"

Mitchie's parents looked at each other as if trying to decide something.

**NOW!**

"Ok. I can't wait any longer. Mitchie, honey…" Mrs. Torres started, "You're goin' to Camp Rock High! Well, we're going… Brown wants my catering company to cater for the high school!"

"I'm going to go with," Mr. Torres added, "We're all moving closer to camp so that we can still be a family on weekends."

Mitchie stood there stunned. Contrary to the response at the beginning of the summer when she heard that she would be going to camp, she was in utter shock. _All of us? Did she say moving? Did she really say that I was going to Camp Rock High? Did Dad really say that he was moving the whole family for me? Oh, they are waiting for me to react…gosh mom looks concerned. What am I gonna tell Sierra? I thought we still had winter break together…_

"Honey, you ok?"

"Yea, Mom," Mitchie shaking her head, "Thank you so much! This is so completely amazing… just… give me a chance to let it all sink in…It's a lot to tell me at once."

"Ok honey but don't take too long, we need to start packing if we are leaving for camp on Saturday."

"Ok, Mom," Mitchie said, walking from the room and pulling her cell phone out of her pocket to text Caitlyn to tell her the… _good news? Yes definitely good news._

_It's a yes!!! My mom's coming back too! It looks like I'm moving too… call me when you get a chance. G2G pack. – Mitchie._

Mitchie continued in somewhat of a dreamy state as she walked up to her room. A room that had been hers since the day she had come home from the hospital. She walked in and sat on her bed._ 'You need that boy like a bowling ball dropped on your head, Which means not at all, You have too much to give, to live to waste your time on him'_

Mitchie picked up the phone and put it to her ear.

"Hey, Caitlyn."

"Mitchie, mi amigo! You're gonna be my roommate! How much more awesome could it get!"

"Yea, it's pretty amazing," Mitchie replied lying back on her bed.

"So, you wanted to talk?"

"Yea, um… I'm a little worried about this whole thing. What if it doesn't work out? My mom and dad are moving out there so we can be close to each other."

"Relax, Mitchie, everything will be just fine. Oh and I have good news. Ella and Peggy are coming too! Tess is going on tour with her mom, so we won't have her around to start drama either."

"Well, that's good."

"Listen, Mitchie I got to go but I'll call you tomorrow ok?"

"Sure thing Caitlyn, bye."

"Bye."

Mitchie ended the call and looked at her phone. _I really don't want to tell Sierra… she doesn't need to be depressed tonight… I'll call her tomorrow._

_I wonder what Nate's up to…What do pop stars do right before starting a tour?_

Mitchie pulled up his number on her phone and sent him a simple text. She didn't expect a text back so quickly.

_Hey, Mitch, what's up? I'm actually cleaning my room… well I'm supposed to be, but Shane came over and is whining about you b/c he picked up my phone when you texted._

Mitchie giggled as she texted back: _I'm coming to Camp Rock High… don't tell Shane, I'm not sure I want him to no, at least not yet. NEway, I'm packing… or I'm supposed to be. My rents are moving closer to camp so that my mom can work there but still C my dad. It's a lot to pack b/c we have never moved before. We have to do it all in a week._

Nate replied quickly:_ You're secret is safe with me as long as Shane doesn't get my cell. I no the feeling. When I moved out to CA 2 years ago it took 4 weeks to pack everything. Good luck!_

Mitchie got up and walked over to her bag. It was still full of all the stuff she had brought to camp. _Well there's no point in unpacking it if I'm just gonna repack it for school anyway._

Instead she walked to her closet and opened it. It was quite full considering that she had all her summer clothes in the wash still. She looked in and started pulling all the clothes out and putting them on her bed. After the content of her closet was on her bed she began to sort them into the different seasons she was going to wear them in.

_Winter, spring, fall, never again, summer._

The never again pile was growing rather large but Mitchie had a plan for that.

When she had sorted all her clothing she headed downstairs for suitcases. She thought that if she put her clothes in suitcases it would be easier to switch out her clothes at the change of the season.

"Hey Mitch," Mrs. Torres said, as Mitchie past through the kitchen to the basement.

"Hi, Mom."

"Your father went to go get boxes to pack into. When he gets back I'll need your help here in the kitchen with all my supplies."

"Ok, Mom. I'm gonna pack some stuff in suitcases."

"Only stuff you need for school, sweetie. Everything else goes in a box marked 'Mitchie.' Ok?"

"Sure, mom."

As Mitchie continued down to the basement she heard the phone ring.

"Mitchie! It's for you when you get a sec!" her mom yelled down the stairs.

"Who is it?"

"I think its Sierra. Did you tell her yet?"

"No… I will but it's… it's gonna be tough."

Mitchie grabbed her suitcases and headed back to the kitchen where her mom stood holding the phone.

Mitchie seized it out of her hand and walked to her room taking the phone and dragging the suitcases behind her.

"Hello?"

"Hey Mitchie. I wanted to know what you were doing tomorrow. Do you want to catch a movie or something?"

"Yea, that sounds great."

"Cool. So, what's up? I overheard your mom say something about needing to tell me something."

"Oh, yea I have big news but I don't want to tell you… not now."

"You're going to that school, aren't you?" Sierra said sounding depressed.

"Yea, but you'll be fine without me. You make friends a lot easier than I do and now you won't have me slugging behind you."

"Mitchie you know that's not true. Why would you say that? You said you made friends this summer and I know it had to be more than one or you wouldn't be ditching me for this new school."

"You think I'm ditching out on you?"

"No, it's just… I'm gonna miss you that's all and seeing you this week and then having to wait until winter break is gonna be difficult. I kinda feel jipped."

"Uh… yea I guess you're right. Have you been by my dad's store today?"

"No…why?"

"Um… there's more."

"More than you leaving for a school 5 hours away from home?"

"Yea…"

"Ok Mitch, give it to me strait I can handle it."

"I'm… I'm… moving."

"WHAT!?! Ok I lied. That's something I can't handle. When did this happen? Why did this happen? When are you moving?"

"Ok. Relax. It's not gonna be as bad as you are making it out to be. I'm sure you can come and visit me and I can come back here to visit you. My mom and dad sat me down a little after I got off the phone with you and told me that I was going to go to Camp Rock High. Then my mom said that they wanted Connie's Catering to cater the school, which means my mom is going to school with me. My dad didn't want to be left home alone all year while my mom and I were gone so he decided that he wanted to move with us. He is moving his shop and buying a house near camp so that we can be a family. I feel bad enough about it already before you go saying things like 'what am I gonna do without you?'"

"Wow, Mitch. That's a lot to handle. Ok. What do you need? Do you want to cancel movie day tomorrow and we can spend the day together while I help you pack instead or do you need the movie day to get away from the craziness at home?"

"I don't know Sierra… maybe we can do a little of both. This house is gonna get packed fast."

"Ok. I'll be over around 9:30 tomorrow morning and we can decide then. For now I won't make plans for this week."

"I probably should get back to packing. Mom wants my help downstairs when my dad gets home anyway."

"Ok. I'll let you go then… bye."

"Bye," Mitchie said sadly.

**Haha I got another chapter done before my life gets crazy! I'm gonna beat out father time at this rate! No more chapters this weekend… I am going on a trip but I'll write the next chapter ASAP. Please review and get back to me… THANKS AMY FOR THE AWSOME IDEAS!**


	5. Packing Up

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: I own nothing but the plot. The songs that are in here vary by artist. Thanks for all the great reviews. Sorry about the slow down in chapters that is about to happen. ENJOY!!!**

**LAST TIME**

"I probably should get back to packing. Mom wants my help downstairs when my dad gets home anyway."

"Ok. I'll let you go then… bye."

"Bye," Mitchie said sadly.

**NOW**

Mitchie hung up her phone and lay down on her bed. It had not hit her until now that she was actually moving. This would be the last week that she would walk down the streets with Sierra, go to a local drugstore to by the latest Pop-Informer magazine, and sit on a bench at the neighborhood park and laugh about the stupid stuff that had gone on in the past.

It is with these thoughts that the tears started to roll down her cheeks. There she lay in the fetal position and her tears drove her into an uneasy sleep.

"_Mitchie, I'm so glad to see you" Shane said._

"_Well, you did say you wanted to go canoeing. So, here I am," Mitchie replied._

"_Come on; let's get into one of these things."_

_Mitchie walked towards the canoe. Shane reached out for her hand as she stepped into the boat._

'_**Romeo take me somewhere, we can be alone. I'll be waiting; all there's left to do is run. You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess, It's a love story, baby, just say yes.**__' Shane's phone began to sing._

"_Oh. Sorry, I need to take this call," Shane said sympathetically._

_Mitchie nodded her head and sat down in the canoe. Shane walked away a little before picking up the phone._

_He hadn't walked very far and Mitchie could still hear what Shane said, and seeing that she couldn't do anything while he was on the phone, she listened._

"_Hey, baby," Shane said into the phone._

_There was a short pause as Shane waited for a response._

"_No, I'm not busy. I'm just with a camper, but I needed to talk to you anyway."_

_Another pause._

"_The camper can wait. What's on your mind?"_

…

"_I actually wanted to talk to you about that… You're a great girl and I love you, but I think we would be better off as friends."_

"_Wow, harsh," Mitchie thought, "Wait did he just break up with someone? Did he just say that he was just with a camper? Am I just like everybody else? Has he been toying with me all this time? Did he really mean what he said when he said I was different than the other girls here? What would have happened if that call hadn't gone though? Would he have just left tomorrow as if I was just another camper?"_

_Shane came back to the boat._

"_Ok, let's get rowing," Shane said getting in._

Unlike what had happened in real life, Mitchie questioned him about it.

"_What was that?"_

"_What was what?"_

"_That phone call," Mitchie stated as they started to row out away from the docks._

"_Oh, just Jason wanting to know if he could eat the rest of my fruit roll ups."_

"_You really expect me to fall for that?"_

"_Ok, so you were eaves dropping," Shane said in a slightly heated tone._

"_Sorry. That isn't the issue here."_

"_We have an issue now?"_

"_Yes, Shane. How long were you planning on stringing me along? What would have happened if that phone call hadn't come in? Would you still be with who ever she was? Would you have brushed me aside tomorrow when we left camp?"_

"_Mitchie, you don't understand. I was gonna break up with Rachel anyway. She and I didn't mesh well. We fought a lot and…"_

"_I don't want to hear it Shane," Mitchie cut him off._

_Then she stood up and pushed him from the boat._

The splashes from the water were ridiculously realistic for a dream. This brought Mitchie out of sleep. She realized that her dream had made her stop crying and also made her begin crying again for a different reason.

_"Why did Shane have to be such a jerk yesterday?" _Mitchie thought as she looked at the clock and realized that it was eight and Sierra would be over soon.

Mitchie knew that that night was one she could never forget. Shane had explained the call. He had said that Rachel meant nothing to him anymore. That she dated him just because she made him look better to the label when he had started to go bad. He had been really level headed about the whole thing.

Mitchie got up and went to the bathroom to shower and do her make up. When she was done she got dressed and started packing the bags she had brought up from the basement the night before. She was packing the last of her closet clothing when Sierra walked in with a two coffee cups and a Dunkin' Doughnut's bag in her hands.

"Good morning, Mitchie," Sierra greeted her her, setting the coffee and bags on the dresser.

"Hey, Sierra," Mitchie said coming over and giving her a hug.

That was one thing Sierra was always good at, she knew how to make Mitchie smile, even at the worst of times.

The two broke apart to see the work that needed to be done. Mitchie's room was covered in posters. She also had tons of things on her dresser and vanity, not to mention her keyboard and guitar stuff in the corner or all the shoes under her bed.

Sierra decided to tackle Mitchie's vanity, feeling it was the messiest part of Mitchie's belongings. Mitchie had make up cases all over the top. There were also multiple things in the drawers for doing her hair and nails.

Mitchie decide to attempt to pack the contents of her dresser. She went downstairs and grabbed several boxes from the den where her father had put them.

She looked around the room. This is where she had lost her first tooth. She had been eating an apple with Sierra while they had been watching cartoons after the school during the first grade. Mitchie shook her head trying to move the memories that would make her cry. She walked out of the room and headed back up the stairs.

Again memories hit her. This is where her mom had let her mattress surf with Sierra during a sleep over. It had resulted in a couple of bruises when the landing had not been too graceful, but it had been a great memory.

As she walked up the stairs, she pulled the pictures off the wall and put them in one of the boxes. She rounded the corner into the hallway. Her she had sat at the top of the stairs waiting to hear Santa come to leave her toys for Christmas. This memory had many years of tradition on it. Somehow, she had never gotten caught.

She walked down the hallway into her bedroom. Sierra had cleared out the drawers of the vanity and if cluttered the floor. Mitchie handed her a box and Sierra got to work.

Sierra took little time going though Mitchie's make up and hair doodads. She finished while Mitchie was still working on packing the top drawer of her dresser.

Mitchie's top drawer was not full of clothing. It was full of keepsake items. Every time she pulled something out it brought back a different memory. There were her ballet shoes from her first year in dance classes, pictures of Sierra and her playing in the sprinkler one summer when they were younger, certificates for her outstanding achievement in middle school, and many other things that reminded her how much she was going to miss living in this little house in an unknown town.

'_You say goodbye and I say hello, hello, hello. I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello. Hello, hello, I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello'_

Mitchie ran over to her piano bench where she had placed her cell phone so as to not accidently pack it. She did not want Sierra to see that it was Nate.

She picked it up and answered it.

"Hello?"

"Hey Mitchie, its Shane."

"What? Why aren't you calling from your phone?"

"You failed to give me your number."

"Huh, I wonder why I did that. Well bye."

Mitchie hung up to find a very confused Sierra sitting on her bed.

"Who was that" Sierra asked.

"Shane."

"Why did you hang up on him?"

"I really don't feel like talking to him right now. Oh and before you ask… I don't want to talk about it."

"Ok, fine. I'm done with the vanity, what else can I do to help?"

"Actually, would you mind taking the posters off the walls and putting them in with the music books in that plastic tube over there?" Mitchie asked pointing to what she was talking about.

"Ok."

Mitchie excused herself from the room for a second, taking her cell phone with her. She did not want Sierra answering if Shane tried to call again. Mitchie knew that anyone could recognize that voice, even if it was over the phone.

She walked down to the kitchen and pulled a few containers out of the refrigerator. She pulled out the bread and made sandwiches for her and sierra and was headed back to her room when her cell phone began singing "Hello Goodbye" again.

She pulled out her cell phone with her empty hand and answered it.

"What Shane?" she asked, slightly heated.

"Yep, I'm definitely not Shane," Nate responded.

"Oh, sorry Nate. What's up?"

"Well, I know you have your reasons, but could you please tell me why you are being so mean to Shane? He won't shut up about you and how he doesn't know what he did and he's really, really, really, really…"

"Ok, Nate get to your point, I have a friend waiting for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and you are slowing down the serving process."

"Really, really, sorry."

"Listen Nate, I know he's sorry, and I know he didn't mean to be a jerk yesterday… yes this is about yesterday morning…but I was still a little miffed with him and as you know I'm going through a lot right now and I just can't deal with him. If you want to phrase that better before you tell him that then fine I don't care. I got to go… I still have half my room to pack before school supply shopping and all."

"Ok."

"Tell Jason and Shane I say hi. But don't let him call me until I give you the all clear. Ok?"

"Got it. Talk to you later, Mitchie."

"Bye, Nate," Mitchie said as she finally reached the door to her room.

"Gee, what took you so long?" Sierra asked.

She had gotten all the posters down and was now working on packing Mitchie's twenty pairs of converse into a box.

"Sorry, a friend called from camp and was very chatty."

"It's fine. Now, give me my peanut butter and jelly."

**How was that? Please review. Thanks for the help Amy. By the way, if you didn't catch it, Rachel is Taylor Swift and i tried to make their conversation about 27 seconds long.**


	6. The Dreaded Goodbye

**Disclaimer: I don't own the characters but I do own the plot.**

* * *

**Ok so the plan for this chapter was to make it really long because I won't be on for awhile. The song that you all don't know is by Kelli Lynn so don't steal the lyrics. I got special permission to use them. And the other one is by Rose Falcon. Enjoy!**

* * *

**LAST TIME**

She had gotten all the posters down and was now working on packing Mitchie's twenty pairs of converse into a box.

"Sorry, a friend called from camp and was very chatty."

"It's fine. Now, give me my peanut butter and jelly."

* * *

**NOW**

After Mitchie and Sierra had finished lunch and Mitchie had packed the entirety of her drawers, they decided to take a packing break and go for a walk.

It was a hot 89 degree day, windy but it was not humid. The girls left the house and walked down the street towards Doreen's, a local drug store. Mitchie had brought her camera with her and they were planning on stopping at the park on the way home.

Sierra was going on about how excited she was about the first day of school. She was saying that it was going to be great with John around. Mitchie was not really listening. She was off in her own little world looking around the town for one last time. Hornsby was a small town. She knew everyone and everything about the little town.

As they reached Doreen's, Mitchie stopped outside.

"Come on, Mitchie, let's go in," Sierra requested.

"Here," Mitchie handed Sierra her camera, "Take a picture of me in front of Doreen's. I don't want to forget this little place."

Sierra took the camera and Mitchie posed in a silly way. After the picture was taken the girls entered the store.

"Hi, Doreen," Mitchie and Sierra said in unison.

"Good afternoon girls, what can I do ya for?" Doreen said from behind the check out counter.

"Um… I'll take a Pop-Informer and a pack of Milk Duds," Sierra replied.

"Hm… How about a green Amp and… Snap magazine," Mitchie answered.

Doreen left the front and came back with their items.

"Thanks," they both said as they paid for the items.

"Anything else?" Doreen asked.

"Yea," Mitchie spoke up, "Can I get a box of envelopes and the music note stationary."

"Why would you need that? The summer's endin', not startin'," Doreen asked as she turned to get the supplies she asked for.

"Oh, I'm moving… so I'm gonna need it for letters at my new school," Mitchie replied, feeling a little excited for the first time since she had found out she was moving.

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that I'm loosin' your business."

"Don't worry, Doreen," Sierra stepped in, "I'm not getting rid of her that easily."

"Is there anything else that you need? School starts in a week. Any school supplies ya need?"

"I don't get my supply list until the first day of school," Sierra replied.

"My school is supplying my supplies for me," Mitchie answered.

Mitchie paid for the stationary and the girls left with a last wave at Doreen. They continued down the street to the stop sign and crossed the street to the park on the corner.

When they had found a nice shaded area, they set their stuff down on the grass and Mitchie pulled out her camera. Mitchie had Sierra pose and took dozens of pictures. They took pictures together for awhile and then sat down to relax and look at the magazines they had purchased.

"Ooh… Pop-Informer had a new quiz. Which Connect 3 member is for you?" Sierra stated.

Mitchie giggled to herself. _I know which Connect 3 member is for me, and if he hadn't been such a jerk on Saturday then Sierra would know too._

"Ok. Shoot."

"Ok. What kind of music do you listen too? Rock or Rap?"

"Where am I going to school, Sierra?"

"Oh, right no duh. Rock. Ok… What do you like to do in your free time? Go to the beach or read a good book?"

"Um…" Mitchie said thinking back to the past weeks, "Go to the beach, I guess."

"That's weird you used to be such a book girl."

"I guess things change," Mitchie responded more to herself than Sierra.

Things had changed a lot over the summer. Mitchie was not the same shy girl that had left for camp the day after school let out. She had a group of friends and a guy she was interested in. She was more outgoing and knew how to get what she wanted. Now that she was thinking about it, a lot of the things that had kept her and Sierra friends for so long really were not true anymore.

"Ok. Next question. Summer or winter?"

"Um… summer."

"Really?"

"Yea, no school project and time to spend with the people you care about."

"I guess that's true. Last question: If you had to pick, would you drink pop or an energy drink."

"Energy drinks, of course."

"You got Shane Gray. With his new attitude you two would be 'Inseparable.' A guy like Shane will take your heart and 'Hold On.'"

"Isn't that interesting? The magazine pegged me for a guy named Shane too… now all I have to do is get over it."

"I take it; he isn't going to Camp Rock High, then."

"No. He's back on the road with a bunch of friends."

"That stinks. Have you talked to him since you got home?"

"No. I'm not sure that I could handle talking to him right now. There's too much going on in my life and he hurt me. I don't want to be rebound girl either."

"What rebound girl? What are you talking about?"

Mitchie explained what had happened down at the docks after Final Jam. Sierra understood… somewhat as Mitchie still kept Shane's full identity hidden. She also told Sierra about what had happened Saturday morning when she had gone to get Caitlyn and how he had acted like a jerk.

"Wow. I guess I didn't get it before. I get it now. You should talk to him though. Every time you mention him you get a smile on your face even if you are mad at him. You should work it out."

"I will, but now isn't the time," Mitchie reasoned.

"Now is the perfect time. Your whole life is about to change whether you like it or not. You are starting afresh and you don't want to be holding on to the baggage of a summer sweetheart. You need to fix this."

"You're right but I don't want to. He needs to learn what it's like to feel hurt or lied to. He didn't tell me he was dating someone."

'_Everything is different, why do things change? I'm still standing here, but you've walked away. Everything is nothing now that I see, everything we are is everything we're gonna be.'_

Mitchie frowned down at her phone. _How did Shane get my number? Nate was the only one with it and that was because I texted him. Oh Nate, I'm gonna… no, it's probably better that he gave Shane my number._

"Mitchie pick it up already," Sierra whined, "I love this song but ringtones aren't very high quality."

Mitchie answered a little hesitantly.

"Hello?"

"Mitchie, before you hang up I'm really, really, really sorry and I didn't mean to be such a jerk. Now can we talk?"

"Ok, Shane I forgive you but you caught me at a bad time. Can I call you later?"

"Yea, sure, fine, just… don't take too long."

"Bye."

"Bye."

"Who was that?" Sierra asked even though the smile Mitchie had plastered on her face said it all.

"It was Shane. He said he was sorry and he wanted to talk but I can talk to him anytime. You, on the other hand, only have me for one more week."

Sierra put on a fake thinking face. "Well, maybe I don't want you around."

Mitchie pushed her and they both started laughing. They got up, grabbed their things and headed down the street. They talked about old memories and how they were going to manage to see each other when they were living so far apart.

They also talked about boys and music and school. There was so much to talk about before Mitchie left that Sierra came over everyday to help Mitchie pack and get her out of the house when she needed a break.

Before she knew it, it was Friday. Sierra was going to sleep over so that she could help pack the last of Mitchie's belongings into Connie's van and the rest of the Torres' stuff into the moving van.

They had decided to do all the silly things girls in movies do at sleepovers. They started the night out with a movie and popcorn. Of course they picked "A Walk to Remember." After the movie ended, the girls did each other's nails and talked about boys. Around midnight they ordered pizza and pigged out while watching Hot Tunes TV.

They had originally been talking about how upset Rachel Fleet had been really upset over the break up with her boyfriend. Then they stated who Rachel's ex was. Shane Gray… the Shane Gray.

"Oh that's so sad, I didn't know they broke up," Sierra thought aloud.

"Oh, really, because I did… kinda…" Mitchie trailed off, "Listen Sierra, there's something I need to tell you. You might not believe me, but it's true."

Sierra muted the TV and looked intently at Mitchie, waiting for her to go on.

"You know how I said I was into a guy from camp."

Sierra nodded.

"You know how I said that he was visiting his uncle and how his name is Shane?"

Sierra nodded again, this time her eyes getting wide.

"Well, I was witness to the Shane Gray breaking up with Rachel Fleet."

"No, you aren't saying that Shane, your Shane is that Shane, are you?"

"Well, actually, yea."

"I don't believe you."

"Sierra, would I lie to you on our last night to hang out for months?"

"I guess not, but I'm still not sure you're telling the truth."

Mitchie rolled her eyes and pulled her camera from the back pack she had full of last minute packing items.

She handed it to Sierra, who took it and turned it on.

"Look at the first few pictures on there. They are from camp. I didn't show them to you earlier, because I didn't think you would want to see the place that was taking me away from Hornsby."

Sierra scrolled through the pictures until she stopped on one of Mitchie standing next to a girl with really curly hair that looked like it had flour in it.

"Who's this?" Sierra asked sounding like she was a little offended that Mitchie had not told her about the new friends that she had made; only that she had made some.

"Oh, that's Caitlyn. She's going to be my room mate. We worked in the kitchen together when she got in a fight with the camp diva, Tess."

Sierra nodded and then started paging through the pictures again. The next one she stopped at was one of Mitchie and Shane. It had been taken the night of final jam while they had been in a canoe.

Sierra stared at it, unbelieving until Mitchie started talking.

"That was taken the last night of camp. Right after he broke up with Rachel. We got into a canoe and paddled in circles for a couple hours just talking."

"That's really cool," Sierra commented.

It amazed her how different Mitchie was now. In the past, Mitchie had never kept secrets from her. She had always been open and honest about everything. That was just how it had always been. This matter of keeping things from her was new.

Mitchie had not told Sierra about the lie fiasco that had gone on at the beginning of camp. She had only heard the good things about Camp Rock. Mitchie had thought that it would be better that Sierra knew less because she would not complain as much about Mitchie leaving for a place that gave her bad memories.

Mitchie took the camera back and the girls got into their sleeping bags.

"Mitchie?"

"What, Sierra?"

"Can you tell me about Camp Rock? Now that I've seen the pictures I want to know all about your summer."

"Well, it's a long story, so get comfortable."

Mitchie came clean with Sierra about everything that happened that summer. Starting with finding out that she was going to camp, meeting Tess, her lie becoming known camp wide, hanging out with Shane, Shane finding out she was lying and turning against her, to Final Jam and the canoe ride later.

Sierra found it all very interesting and asked a load of questions. Mitchie quietly answered them, getting sleepier by the second. When the questions were over and the girls were about to fall asleep, Sierra got a text message from John.

"Oh, snap," Sierra said in shock.

"What?" Mitchie asked sleepily.

"The people who own the house John is supposed to move into have decided not to sell. Now he has no place to live."

"Well, my parents haven't sold this house yet, and it's big enough for a family of four."

"I'll talk to your dad about it in the morning. I'll be weird coming here to see someone else answer the door though."

With that being said the girls fell asleep.

* * *

'_Hey you, don't let 'em see you frown, Come on turn it upside down. Don't ever quit, get up, get up. When life, puts you to the test, there's nothing better than your best. Show 'em what you got, you got a lot. Show 'em what you got, get up, get up. Get up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up.'_

_Wow, this week went fast. It's already Saturday. Moving day! I should probably stop the alarm before Sierra throws something at me._ Mitchie looked at the sleeping bag next to her. It was empty._ Where did she go?_

Mitchie got up, grabbed her cell phone, stopped the alarm on it, and went down to the kitchen in search of her best friend.

She found her fully dressed, sitting on a stool talking to Mr. Torres. Mitchie recalled the conversation of the night before. She sat down at the counter next to Sierra.

"Good morning," Mitchie said in a less than pleased tone.

She was not a morning person at all.

"Zǎo ān" Sierra greeted in Chinese.

"How did you sleep honey?" Mitchie's father asked.

"Ok. It would have been better if we hadn't already packed my bed."

"I'm sure you're right," her mother said entering the room fully clothed.

Mrs. Torres picked up a chair at the table and walked out the door with it. Mr. Torres, following her lead, took two more chairs and exited the room.

"So, what did my dad say about John moving in here?"

"I gave him the number and he said he'd call after you were at camp."

"That's cool."

"Mitchie, you better get dressed you have to leave in about an hour and you haven't even showered yet."

"True, but what are you going to do if I am in the shower."

"I brought my lap top, I'll see if anyone is on and if they aren't I'll just go on the Shane Gray fan site."

"Ok, but keep your mouth shut about last night."

"You got it. Now, go get ready."

Mitchie hurried out of the kitchen, up the stairs to her room. She picked up the bundle of clothes that she had left unpacked and headed for the bathroom.

'_You say goodbye and I say hello, hello hello. I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello. Hello hello, I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello'_

Mitchie looked down at her phone. It was just like Nate to call and seven in the morning.

"Hello," Mitchie answered.

"Hey, Mitchie. It's Nate. I just wanted to say good luck with the move and everything. Shane's here too, but he's kinda cranky."

"Tell her I say hi," Mitchie heard a groggy Shane say.

"He says hi."

"Hi back to him. Listen, I'm in a time crunch I'll call you when I get to camp. DON'T tell Shane. Tell him I'll call him when I get settled in my new surroundings. I don't think I can talk to him right now."

"Ok, Mitchie. Good luck," Nate said kindly.

"Bye, Nate.'

"Bye."

Mitchie pressed end and took her shower. She got out 5 minutes later and got dressed.

-_'You need that boy like a bowling ball dropped on your head, Which means not at all, You have too much to give, to live to waste your time on him'_

"Hello," Mitchie answered while drying her hair with at towel.

"Hey, it's Caitlyn. Today is moving day!"

"I know I can't wait to get to camp! It's really exciting. I feel like this week has lasted forever."

"Me too. Hey, my mom told me to ask if you need help moving into your house. She said that she could drive me out to your old house because we are on vacation a little ways away and then we can drive up to camp together."

"That sounds great, but what about your stuff?"

"It's getting expressed mailed to camp because there was too much to fit on a bus."

"Ok sounds great. Do you need the address?"

"No, I got it the last Saturday just incase you weren't coming to school, remember, Mitchie?"

"Oh right. Ok. How long do you think you need to get here?"

"Give my about fifteen minutes. We are getting off the expressway now."

"Ok, see you then."

"Bye, Mitchie," Caitlyn ended the phone call.

Mitchie put her phone down and finished drying her hair.

When she had finished getting ready for the day she went into her room to see Sierra sitting on the floor with her lap top out.

Mitchie shook her head. It was just like Sierra to sit on the floor instead of some place a little more comfortable.

"Hey, ready to finish filling the car," Mitchie said, approaching Sierra.

"Yea, just one second. John is telling me what is going on with his house problem."

"Ok."

"And… lets… go," Sierra said, finishing her sentence and closing the computer. She stood up and followed Mitchie down to the garage.

They stepped out into the almost empty garage and saw Mr. and Mrs. Torres filling the van with the last of the family's belongings.

Mitchie's eyes stated to water. _This is really it. I'm leaving. This is the last time I will walk out of this garage…the last time I will call this place home. This is the last time I'll be able to walk one block over to go see Sierra. The last time that she'll try to cheer me up._

But Sierra was not trying to cheer Mitchie up. She looked just as broken up and Mitchie felt. It was too hard for her to try to stay strong. One look at each other was all it took for the two to completely fall to pieces.

_Beep, beep._ The sound of a car horn as Sierra's parents pulled up in their 2000 Toyota, Camry. Sierra grabbed her stuff, which was sitting right inside the house, hugged Mitchie, said goodbye, and walked to the car. She opened the door and with one last wave got in.

Mitchie had very little time to cry about leaving Sierra because not ten minutes after Sierra's parents pulled out, Caitlyn's parent's Cadillac pulled in to the driveway.

Caitlyn was hanging out the window waving with a smile on her face.

Mitchie couldn't help but smile back. Caitlyn had been the one to cheer her up at camp and she could tell that she would never be sad for long, with Caitlyn around.

As soon as the car stopped Caitlyn ran up and gave Mitchie a big hug.

"Mitchie! I'm so glad to see you. I know you're upset and dealing with a lot but I'm so glad that I get to hang with you all year! This is sooo exciting!"

"Hey Caitlyn. Yea, I'm a little nerves but it'll be great."

"Caitlyn, we're going. Come say goodbye," Caitlyn's mother said from behind Connie's van where the parents had been talking.

Caitlyn ran over to her mom and gave her a hug. "Bye, Mom. Bye Dad," Caitlyn said moving to her dad to give him a hug, "See you for Thanksgiving."

"Bye Caitlyn, we love you," her mom said.

"I love ya'll to," Caitlyn replied, as her parents headed back to their car.

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**I might have more time to write in the next week but if I don't I hope you liked the chapter. I would really enjoy lots of reviews. Thanks so much for reading and commenting. I know this was a tear jerker but the next chapter will be more up beat. I promise.**


	7. WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?

**LAST TIME**

"Mitchie! I'm so glad to see you. I know you're upset and dealing with a lot but I'm so glad that I get to hang with you all year! This is sooo exciting!"

"Hey Caitlyn. Yea, I'm a little nerves but it'll be great."

"Caitlyn, we're going. Come say goodbye," Caitlyn's mother said from behind Connie's van where the parents had been talking.

Caitlyn ran over to her mom and gave her a hug. "Bye, Mom. Bye Dad," Caitlyn said moving to her dad to give him a hug, "See you for Thanksgiving."

"Bye Caitlyn, we love you," her mom said.

"I love ya'll to," Caitlyn replied, as her parents headed back to their car.

**NOW**

After Caitlyn's parents left, Mitchie, Caitlyn and Mrs. Torres piled into the Connie's Catering van. Mr. Torres got into the moving van and they headed out. Mitchie pulled her camera out of her messenger bag and took one last picture of her house out the window.

_Goodbye 1451 Taylor Street, Hornsby, Tennessee. Goodbye Sierra. Goodbye people who made me who I am today. I'm gonna miss you all but I'll never forget you and this little town._

Mitchie turned to Caitlyn. "This is really hard for me."

"Then let's not talk about it. Let's talk about… Nate," Caitlyn said turning slightly red.

"Oh my gosh! You like him?" Mitchie asked in a pressing manner.

"Yea, a lot."

"Well, you should have said something earlier. I've been talking to him all week."

"You have his number?!?" Caitlyn freaked.

Connie laughed at the conversation going on in the seat behind her. It had been a really long time since she had seen Mitchie this happy.

In the last few years Mitchie had been the middle of a lot of friend drama that had landed her with one friend and lots of enemies at school. Sierra was getting made fun of because she was smarter than a bunch of Mitchie's other friends and Mitchie had sided with her best friend. She had lost her big group of friends but she had been strong about it. Mrs. Torres had known that Mitchie was faking it. Mitchie was a strong girl but there had been many nights that Connie had heard Mitchie cry herself to sleep or shout her old friends names in her sleep. This was a nice change. Mitchie had seemed happier at camp and that was part of the reason that Connie had accepted Brown's offer to cater.

Her father had seen it too, although, he saw this as an opportunity for Mitchie to start over with real friends. He was very observant and he had watched Mitchie and Sierra grow apart but still try to stay close. He knew that it was ripping Mitchie apart whether she realized it or not.

"So, Caitlyn, do you want it or not?" Mitchie taunted Caitlyn, taking out her cell phone.

"Give me the number. I want it now!"

Mitchie laughed and surrendered her phone to Caitlyn.

"Oooh, is this the Shane I think it is?" Caitlyn said in a bragging manner.

"Yes, that is Shane's number."

"Did you fix things with him yet?"

"Yea, well, kinda."

"I talked to him on Monday, but I haven't had a chance to talk to him since. I've been really busy."

"Mitchie, I've moved ten times and I know it doesn't take that much time to pack the house even with only six hands."

"Actually, we had eight. My friend, Sierra, helped out. She may have even found a person to buy the house."

"That's cool. Do you have a picture of her?"

Mitchie took her camera out again and handed it to Caitlyn.

"Wow, she's really…um…"

"Geeky? Yeah, I know. She and I have been friends since we were five. I stood up for her about two years ago and everyone pegged me as a geek too. I lost all my other friends, but it was worth it."

Caitlyn smiled at her friend. She knew if she had been in that position she may have regretted standing up for the geek but she was proud that Mitchie was not that way.

"You want to know something funnier?" Mitchie asked, "She's had more boyfriends than I have.

Mitchie shrugged. For her it was not that big of a deal. She had friends and she had been so busy with choir and schoolwork that she really did not have time for a boyfriend until the past summer.

"Really?" Caitlyn asked, "But you're so pretty and talented."

"And so friends with the geekiest girl at school. I love Sierra and everything but being friends with the girl who gets strait A's and cries when she gets a B, makes it hard to have other friends."

"Wow… I didn't know why you wanted to be accepted by Tess before but now I get it. It was a big deal to you to get into the in crowd."

"Look how that turned out. I wouldn't give this past summer up for anything though. I met some great people, including the most amazing music producer. I may have even fallen for a jerky pop star."

"Mitchie, Caitlyn. We're going to stop for lunch soon, any place you want to stop in particular?" Mrs. Torres said from the front seat.

"Clovers!" they both shouted at once.

"You're a Clovers fan too?" Caitlyn asked.

"Yea, I love their chicken sandwiches. We stop there every time we go on vacation," Mitchie answered.

The girls talked about Nate and Shane until they arrived at Clovers. Once there, they got out and headed in. They did not even notice the trailer that had parked next to Mr. Torres' truck, or rather that was the reason they did not see it.

Mr. Torres held the door while the three girls entered the restaurant. The girls headed to the register and ordered their food. They took their seats as they waited for food to come.

All of a sudden Mitchie couldn't see. Some one had cupped their hands over her eyes blocking her view.

"Guess who" a slightly gruff voice.

"I don't know. Who would come up to me and put their hands over my face in the middle of nowhere."

"Just take a wild guess."

"Ok, uh, Shane Gray," Mitchie said thinking back to her pervious discussion with Caitlyn.

The hands moved away and the owner of the voice came around to look at Mitchie.

"How did you guess?" Shane said with a smile on his face.

"SHANE! What are you doing here?" Mitchie said, half excited and half in a panic.

"My Uncle Brown wanted us to come welcome the students to Camp Rock High. What about you?"

"I'm moving," Mitchie stated, not wanting Shane to know where she was really going.

Nate came up behind Shane, wondering who he was talking to.

"Hey, Shane we got to get…Mitchie what are you doing here?" Nate said coming up to the table.

"I'm moving today, remember?" Mitchie answered, trying to send Nate a clear message with her eyes without Shane noticing.

"Oh, yea." Nate said rubbing the back of his neck.

Caitlyn nudged Mitchie under the table, not liking being ignored.

"Oh, Shane you remember Caitlyn," Mitchie said introducing them again.

"Yea, hey Caitlyn. You had some sweet moves this summer."

"Thanks," Caitlyn said smiling, "I'm Caitlyn," she said, putting her hand out for Nates.

"Nate," he said taking it.

"Mitchie, can I talk to you for a second?" Nate asked.

"Yea, sure, I guess I'll be right back."

Nate headed out the door and Mitchie followed.

"Ok. What's up, Nate?"

"You need to tell Shane."

"What? Nate, we've been over this. I don't want Shane to know yet because it'll just give him an excuse to go back to camp."

"Oh, is that why? You weren't very clear before. Anyway, I need you to think back to this summer when he found out you were lying to him."

Memories flooded back to Mitchie. She shook her head to let them go.

"Ok. What about that?"

"Don't you think you saying you're moving is kind of lying that you aren't going to Camp Rock High?"

"I guess, but…"

"No buts…Mitchie, I can't stand to see him like that again. You need to tell him, or I'm going to," Nate said about to walk away.

Mitchie grabbed his arm.

"Nate, fine, I'll tell him but you need to promise me that you will keep him on track this year. You are going on a world tour for crying out loud. If he wants to come back to camp every few weeks you need to stop him.

It's not camp for me anymore, it's school so I won't be the same happy go lucky girl I was this summer. He needs to be focused or you are just digging yourselves a bigger whole."

"Ok. Tell him. I'll keep him in check, I promise," Nate said.

Mitchie leaned over and gave him a hug. When the two parted, they walked back to the table where Jason had joined Caitlyn, Shane, and Mitchie's parents. Their food had arrived and Caitlyn was laughing at something Shane had said while she chewed on her fries.

Mitchie came back and took her seat. Nate followed, slightly behind her.

"Sorry to interrupt, but as I was telling Shane before we bumped into you guys, we need to get going or we'll never make it to camp," Nate said.

Shane looked at the display on his cell phone.

"I guess you're right," he said getting up, "Uncle Brown wants us there at three."

He and his brothers stood. Mitchie stood also, not wanting to make it awkward that she did not say goodbye.

"Well, I guess we'll see you in a couple hours, then," Mitchie said, hoping Shane would catch the hint.

"Yea, hey, Mitchie, don't be a stranger. Call me later ok… wait did you say you were going to see us in a couple hours?"

"You heard her right, dude," Nate said patting his friend on the back.

"Wait you knew about this," Shane said turning to Nate.

"Shane, it's not his fault… I told him not to tell you," Mitchie said defending Nate.

"Why?" Shane asked confused.

"I'll explain it later, you need to get going."

After Shane and Nate gave Mitchie a hug and had shaken hands with Caitlyn and Mitchie's father, Nate pushed his band mates towards the door.

**What did you think? I hope I did it justice. It's not as depressing as the last one.**

**Please Review!!!!!!!!!!**


	8. Welcome Home

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I got this chapter done! What an accomplishmet. Written in one day! Hope you guys like it. Don't forget to comment! Thanks for all the comments on the last chapter! Lacey

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**LAST TIME**

"Why?" Shane asked confused.

"I'll explain it later, you need to get going."

After Shane and Nate gave Mitchie a hug and had shaken hands with Caitlyn and Mitchie's father, Nate pushed his band mates towards the door.

* * *

**NOW**

After an exciting lunch, the girls piled back into the van and followed Mr. Torres' truck back out onto the high way. Now that Mitchie had talk to Shane she was feeling more excited about her new life at Camp Rock High.

Mitchie and Caitlyn started to discuss their cabin arrangements and how they wanted to decorate. Caitlyn had suggested getting Connect 3 to sign one of the posters she had gotten out of Pop-Informer. She thought it would add a little pizzazz to the room as well as allow her to stare into Nate's beautiful brown eyes anytime she wanted. Mitchie had agreed and they had moved on to how they wanted to set up furniture.

The furniture was all going to be there except that it was moveable so Caitlyn and Mitchie could move their desks, dressers, and beds in any way that would make their cabin more of a home.

About two hours later Mrs. Torres pulled off the high way and drove down a rural road towards a large house on a hill.

"Hey girls," Mitchie's mom called to the back, "you can see the new house from here"

Mitchie and Caitlyn looked out the window.

"Whoa, that house is bigger than our old one and we won't even be in it most of the time," Mitchie commented.

"Your father wanted it to make you want to come home," Connie commented.

"Can you adopt me?" Caitlyn asked, jokingly.

As they pulled into the drive of the big blue house, Mitchie took off her seatbelt and unlocked the door. As soon as the car stopped she opened the door and ran outside.

Mitchie's dad beat her to the door and unlocked it. He opened it and allowed Mitchie to take the first step into the house.

"Wow," Mitchie said, "I love it."

"Wait until you see your room," Mr. Torres replied, leading her upstairs, as Mrs. Torres and Caitlyn followed.

"This is the guest room, the music room, the master bedroom, and last but not least," Mr. Torres said, trying to add suspense, "your room," he said opening the door at the end of the hall way.

Mitchie took one step in. It was a spacious room with red and white walls. There were doors off the left side that lead to a balcony and a big window opposite the door that looked out over the back yard.

"It's perfect!" Mitchie yelled, turning to give her dad a hug, "Thank you daddy!"

He hugged her back and then took Mrs. Torres' hand and showed her the master bedroom.

Caitlyn came in and took a look around the room.

"Ok, may I just say that I love this room."

"I would have been happy with a room the same size as my old one, but this… this makes the move so much easier," Mitchie commented with a laugh.

"Come on, let's go help your parents with the unpacking," Caitlyn said steering Mitchie out of her room by her shoulders.

When Mitchie reached the moving van, she opened the back and pulled out two boxes and handed them to Caitlyn.

"Where do these go?" Caitlyn asked.

"Um… I think they go in the kitchen. The boxes say cooking supplies."

"Gotcha."

Caitlyn headed back into the house while Mitchie grabbed another two boxes. Her mom came out of the house and took them from her.

"I'll take these. I really want to be the one who puts away all the kitchen equipment for when I'm home."

The next two boxes went to her father and then she finally found two boxes that were headed up stairs.

She took the boxes and walked back into the house. She put them in the empty room and looked around. Her father had been so excited to show her her room that he hadn't let her take a look at what he had called the music room.

It had white walls and a big picture window that looked out over the back yard. _This is a great room for music. It will resonate well and I can draw a ton of inspiration from the prairie beyond the back yard._

"Mitchie, your mom needs help with your bed frame," Caitlyn called.

Mitchie left the room with some lyrics in mind. When she reached the front door she could see that her mother was struggling with two pieces of the bed frame.

Mitchie rushed to her mom's side and took one of them and all four people headed up to Mitchie's room.

Her mom and dad had decided to push the downstairs furniture to the back of the truck so that Mitchie and Connie would be able to leave for camp faster.

In a little less than two hours, Mitchie and Connie were completely unpacked. They hugged and kissed Mr. Torres goodbye and the three girls piled back into the van.

"Next stop, Camp Rock," Mrs. Torres said pulling around the drive and back up the road.

* * *

**A half and hour later**

"Look! I can't see the Camp Rock sign!" Caitlyn said grabbing Mitchie's arm to get her attention.

Mitchie looked up and smiled. Then she started singing the camp song. Caitlyn joined in and the girls were shortly joined by a slightly out of key Connie.

Connie pulled the van into its familiar spot next to the kitchen. _I'm here. This is finally it. My favorite place in the world and now the place I will spend my junior year in high school._

Mitchie got out of the car. _'__Everything is different, why do things change? I'm still standing here, but you've walked away. Everything is nothing now that I see, everything we are is everything we're gonna be.'_

Mitchie picked up her phone.

"Shane?"

"Hey, was that your mom's van I saw pull up?"

"Yea. I've got to get my cabin assignment and unpack. Can I call you back?"

"How about you meet me at your cabin."

"What? Do you already know which cabin Caitlyn and I are in?"

"Yea, just go find Brown and meet me there. Nate and I want to help. We have to stay hidden until tonight's meeting anyway."

"Ok. I'll see you soon," Mitchie said, hanging up and waving at Brown who was approaching her mom.

"Hello," Brown called out, walking up.

"Hey, Brown, long time, no see!" Caitlyn said, with a little wave.

"Mitchie and Caitlyn, the two most talented girls from Camp Rock 2008. How are you ladies?"

"Good, thanks, how are you?" Mitchie replied.

"I'm terrific and horribly excited that you all were able to come to Camp Rock High School of the Performing Arts. I'm assuming that you are eager to get your schedules and your cabin assignments. Am I right?"

The girls nodded with glee.

"I'm afraid that Dee has them. She's in the mess hall, if you want to go find her while I talk to your mom about the menu," Brown said, directing the last comment at Mitchie.

"Thank you, see you later," Caitlyn said, dragging Mitchie towards the doors of the mess hall.

"Dee!" Caitlyn called, walking into the mess hall.

"There's my favorite niece," Dee said, coming up to Caitlyn and giving her a hug.

"Hi, Aunt Dee," Caitlyn said, smiling, "Brown said you have our schedules."

"Yes, as a matter of fact I do," Dee said, shuffling through the papers in her hand.

She pulled out two sheets. One was handed to Caitlyn, the other, to Mitchie.

* * *

**MICHELLE ELISABETH TORRES**

**Camper: 987**

**Cabin: MELODY**

**Counselor: CONNIE TORRES**

**Gender: FEMALE**

**Year: JUNIOR**

PASSING PERIODS ARE **5** MINUTES LONG PLEASE BE ON TIME!

YOU **MUST** ATTEND EVERY MEAL. NO EXCEPTIONS EXCEPT IF YOU ARE IN THE INFERMARY.

**Period** **Time** **Class** **Teacher**

**1 6:30-7:00 Breakfast Preparation Torres**

**2 7:00-7:30 Breakfast Staff**

**3 7:35-7:55 Dance Catsing**

**4 8:00-8:45 Music Production Spray**

**5 8:50-9:35 English Brookram**

**6 9:40-10:25 Lyric Writing Swiff**

**7 10:30-11:05 Physics Berry**

**8 11:10-11:55 Voice Brown **

**9 12:00-12:30 Lunch Preparation Torres**

**10 12:35-1:00 Lunch Staff**

**11 1:05-1:50 Spanish 5**(private study)** Dominguez**

**12 1:55-2:40 Guitar Anadeski**

**13 2:45-3:30 American History Demicon**

**14 3:35-4:10 Functions/Trigonometry Levalo**

**15 4:15-5:00 Piano Summit**

**16 5:05-5:30 Dinner Preparation Torres**

**17 5:30-6:00 Dinner Staff**

**18 6:00-9:00 Homework and Study -------**

**--- 9:00-11:30 Free Time -------**

**--- 11:30 Lights Out -------**

HOMEWORK AND STUDY IS TO BE DONE IN **YOUR CABINS** UNLESS YOU NEED THE USE OF BOOKS OR OTHER MATERIALS IN THE **LIBRARY** OR A **PRACTICE** CABIN.

**CLASSES ARE NOT IN SESSION ON SATUDAYS OR SUNDAYS.**

* * *

After a careful look at her own schedule, Mitchie looked over at Caitlyn's. It was just about the same except for food preparation wasn't in her schedule and her math and music production classes were at different times. Instead she had free periods during food preparation and her math and music production classes were switched.

_This is going to be a great year. Caitlyn is in my cabin, we have almost all our classes together, Sierra has a new boyfriend, my dad has a place for his business, mom has a full time job, and Shane and Nate are here to get things started…oh no, Shane…_

"Caitlyn, let's head to Melody, I have a surprise for you," Mitchie said, coming out of her thoughts and pulling Caitlyn out of the mess hall.

"Bye, Dee," Caitlyn called, as she was dragged towards the cabin marked "Melody."

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**SO WHAT DID YOU THINK??? I'M REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO COMMENTS. I HOPE TO GET ANOTHER CHAPTER UP OVER THE WEEKEND BUT IF I DON'T IT MIGHT BE AWHILE. THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT. LACEY**


	9. Would You Be My?

**Ok. I'm feeling really ambitious. I know this chapter is short but my editor loved it. Thanks for the reviews, comments, and adds to alert of favorite. It really brightened my day. The song in the last chapter that is Shane's ringtone doesn't belong to me. It belongs to Kelli Lynn. Please do not steal it. Enjoy!**

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LAST TIME

_This is going to be a great year. Caitlyn is in my cabin, we have almost all our classes together, Sierra has a new boyfriend, my dad has a place for his business, mom has a full time job, and Shane and Nate are here to get things started…oh no, Shane…_

"Caitlyn, let's head to Melody, I have a surprise for you," Mitchie said, coming out of her thoughts and pulling Caitlyn out of the mess hall.

"Bye, Dee," Caitlyn called, as she was dragged towards the cabin marked "Melody."

* * *

**NOW**

"Mitchie, what about our stuff? Don't we need stuff to unpack so we _can_ unpack?"

"You can get it after we see the cabin. I want to claim my bed incase we get more room mates."

"I guess that's true," Caitlyn said following Mitchie up the steps that lead to the cabin door.

Mitchie grabbed the handle and pushed it open.

"Surprise!" she yelled, "We have our own moving crew."

Shane and Nate got off the bed they had been sitting on and came to the door.

"Hey, it's been forever since I saw you," Shane said, pulling Mitchie into a hug.

"Shane, it's only been three hours," Mitchie replied pulling away; just to be pulled into another hug by Nate.

"Hey, Caitlyn," Shane said, bringing Caitlyn into a one armed hug.

"Hi, Shane," Caitlyn answered, "Nate," she said nodding his direction.

All four of them stood there for a moment.

"Well, this is awkward…" Nate commented.

"It wasn't awkward until you said that," Caitlyn retorted.

"Let's go get our stuff," Mitchie interrupted in hopes to make the transition less awkward.

"Yea," Shane said, heading toward the cabin door.

"I thought you were hiding out," Mitchie said; as she walked through the door Shane was holding open for her.

"Yea, well, as long as I'm with you, girls will think I'm taken. That's a good thing too because I am…right?"

"Shane Gray," Mitchie said, stopping him, "Are you asking me to be your girlfriend?"

"Well," Shane started to fumble over his words, "I mean if you just want to be friends that's totally fine, I can live with that. If you don't like me, that's cool too. I'm The Shane Gray and I can deal with rejection."

Mitchie put her hand up to his mouth.

"Shane, relax. I wasn't gonna answer with a no, but I can't say yes… not now."

"What? I don't understand."

"Mitchie, is you're mom's car open?"

Caitlyn and Nate had finally caught up.

"Yea, I think so."

"So, Mitchie," Nate began, "I know we aren't really close friends or anything, but… my sister's best friend is coming up to camp for school and she doesn't know anyone. I know I should have asked first, but… I kinda told Dee to put her in your cabin."

Nate flinched waiting for Mitchie's response.

"Oh, ok. What's her name?"

"Wow, you took that way better than I thought. Her name is Alicia, she's a junior too."

"That's cool. What does she look like? I want to keep an eye out for her."

"She about 5'5", short brown hair, her nails are always some shade of purple, really translucent blue eyes, average weight, and a nice upper deck, if you know what I mean."

"Nate," Shane said, coming around to cover the girls ears, "dude, you don't say that to girls."

"Sorry, I never had How to Talk to Girls 101."

"We can help you there," Caitlyn said pulling away from Shane's hand.

"Yea," Mitchie said, "I'll be…fun."

Only Caitlyn saw the look on Mitchie's face as they reached the car. Nate was going to get schooled…majorly.

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**What did you think? I really hope you liked it as much as my editor did. Please review!**


	10. How to Talk to a Girl 101

**I got another chapter up! I'm really happy today becaues I just got my grades back and I did well so I hope you like this.**

**LAST TIME**

"Sorry, I never had How to Talk to Girls 101."

"We can help you there," Caitlyn said pulling away from Shane's hand.

"Yea," Mitchie said, "I'll be…fun."

Only Caitlyn saw the look on Mitchie's face as they reached the car. Nate was going to get schooled…majorly.

* * *

**NOW**

For the next two hours the boys helped the girls unpack. The boys left for about fifteen minutes to go see Brown, so the girls could unpack their unmentionables.

Since it was a Saturday, they had no place to be until orientation that evening and they decided to spend some time just hanging out.

"Ok," Caitlyn started, "Now, Nate, the first thing you need to know about how to treat a girl is…"

"How to be a gentleman," Mitchie interrupted.

"Number one," Shane came in, "open the door and let the girl go through first."

Shane demonstrated, letting Mitchie exit the cabin first followed by Caitlyn, and finally Nate.

"What if there are two girls?" Nate asked.

"You let both of them go first, and then you go. And if it's a double date and there are two boys, you allow both girls to go before the guys. Then you follow. If you are holding the door you go after the other boy, if not you go after the girls," Caitlyn answered like a professional.

"Ok, I think I got it."

"Let's try it out then," Mitchie said, pulling the door open.

Nate walked right through it. He was so focused on not screwing up, that he screwed up.

"Um…Nate," Caitlyn called picking up a spray bottle.

"Yea," he said turning his head, just to be shot in the face with water.

"What was that for?" he asked in horror.

Mitchie gave Caitlyn a high five.

"You do something wrong, you get punished. You do something right and you get rewarded," Mitchie explained.

"I didn't agree to that," Nate came back at them.

"Fortunately, your pal, Shane, did," Mitchie said, patting Nate on the back.

"So… what's my reward?"

"You'll see," Shane said, with a smile.

_I wonder what he'll do when he finds out that the reward is just moving on to the next lesson…I hope he won't be mad at us. I guess when he passes we can give him something real. I'll have to talk to Caitlyn about it._

"Ok… I don't get what I did wrong. I just walked though the door. What could I have done wrong that easily?"

"Let's think, shall we," Shane said, taking a seat on the bed by the door and scratching his chin, "Mitchie opened the door; you walked in, followed by Caitlyn and myself."

Nate slapped himself on the forehead.

"It's ok, Nate," Caitlyn comforted him, "We'll try again."

Shane got up and took his place next to Nate by the door. Nate opened the door and offered it to Caitlyn and Mitchie. Once they were safely through, Shane followed them out and Nate came out at the rear of the group.

"Ok, let's go back in," Caitlyn said, grabbing the door handle.

"I'll take that," Nate said, holding the door open while Caitlyn, Mitchie and Shane walked in.

"Congratulations. You passed the first test of How to Talk to Girls 101 the Crash Course. Moving on…"

"Wait a minute," Nate cut Caitlyn off, "What about my reward?" he asked, crossing his arms and pouting like a three year old.

"This is your reward, dude," Shane said, "You're still dry aren't you?"

"Are you kidding me? I thought you had something better in mind."

"What did you expect us to do? We're in the middle of nowhere, with nothing of importance," Mitchie replied.

"I don't know, I guess this makes sense. Sorry I got all pop-star on you for a second."

"It's not as bad as my first day back here," Shane responded, giving Nate's shoulder a pat.

"Now that your moment is over, then next step is what you do once you are out side of the house," Mitchie started.

"Getting into the car," Caitlyn finished.

Nate groaned.

"Why do there have to be so many rules? I thought you were just going to teach me how to talk to girls, not how to treat them."

"Well, from the looks of it, you need both," Mitchie said with a weak smile, "Not that I mind being your buddy, but guys need to treat girls a certain way. You got the calling and texting part right, but the spoken word… not so much."

"Is that who you were talking to all week?" Shane questioned.

"Yea," Nate said, rubbing the back of his neck, "Mitchie told me not to tell you, I swear man, it's not my fault."

"That reminds me, Mitchie, you told me that you were going to explain why you didn't tell me earlier and you never answered my question," Shane said, turning to Mitchie.

"Um…now?"

"Why not?"

"Ok… um… Caitlyn, do you think you can handle the next lesson with Nate, we'll be back soon. I just need to talk to Shane about something."

Caitlyn gave Mitchie a questioning look, before nodding her head.

Mitchie grabbed Shane's hand and pulled him out the door.

* * *

After they had walked out of ear shot of the cabin, Mitchie began to speak.

"One thing at a time. First, I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to even think about giving up your tour for a silly job at Camp Rock High or even coming as a student for your senior year."

"What gave you that idea?" Shane asked, turning to look at Mitchie.

Mitchie stopped.

"It's just that…you and I got really close this summer and…I was scared, about how you felt about me. I mean it was quite obvious when you sang with me at final jam that you had feelings for me.

"I have never been the girl that guys fell for, especially not in my old town…I…I just, didn't know how to deal with my feelings and I thought that if I didn't tell you, you would go off on your tour and be more focused on what you were doing. Nate said that I changed you over the summer and as much as I don't believe that, if it's true who knows what will happen when you go off on your tour and you miss me and know that acting out will land you back here with your uncle and… me."

"Wow, you really thought this out…"

"Yea and that brings me to your second question… I want to say yes but with both of us being so busy with school, the tour, in my case a move and a big life change already, I think it would be best if we stay friends…just until I'm stable."

Mitchie looked down. She felt like crying but she didn't want her tears to ruin her make up… not in front of Shane.

"Hey," Shane said, lifting her chin with his finger, "What ever you think is best. I understand. I can live with just friends for right now, the last thin you need is press all over you on top of everything."

"Press? I hadn't thought about that."

"Oh, I'm sorry I brought it up."

"It's ok."

"Does this mean that we can only, you know, talk to each other once a week and the conversations have to be the lame ones about the weather?"

This made Mitchie laugh.

"No. I don't think I could handle talking to you only once a week. As for conversations, I talk to Nate about everything. You and I can talk about anything you want to talk about."

"The weather seems nice today," Shane joked.

Mitchie playfully punched him in the arm.

"Come on, we better get back," Shane said, pulling Mitchie back towards the direction of the cabin.

"Shane!" a girl called, waving and heading in his direction with multiple suitcases on a trolley.

"Hey, Alicia," Shane called, waving back.

The girl made her way over to the two who were still headed back to the cabin.

"Long, time, no see Shane," Alicia commented.

"Yea, a whole, what, 24 hours?" Shane replied, "Oh. Mitchie, this is Alicia. She's the girl Nate was telling you about. She's going to be your room mate."

"Hi, I'm Mitchie, it's so cool to meet you," Mitchie greeted, holding out her hand.

"Alicia," Alicia said, taking her hand, "I'm sure we'll be great friends."

Mitchie smiled, then frowned as she heard yelling coming from inside the cabin.

"Caitlyn, I swear, if you spray me again…"

"You'll what? Tell me a bad joke…"

"What did I do this time?!"

"You threatened a girl!"

"Yea, but I wasn't serious!"

"Girls don't care. They don't like it!"

"AHHHHHH!"

Nate ran out of the cabin sopping wet. He was yelling and only stopped short when he spotted the three witnesses in front of him.

"Oh, um…hi, Alicia. Mitchie, you need to control that demon friend of yours."

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**What did you think? I hope you liked it. Please leave a review or feedback! Thanks so much for reading.**

**~Lacey~**


	11. A Lot for One Day

**Hey! I got yet another chapter up and it's only Satuday. I guess my good grades are a real power to me. I hope you like it. Thanks for all the reviews!**

**Lacey**

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LAST TIME

"AHHHHHH!"

Nate ran out of the cabin sopping wet. He was yelling and only stopped short when he spotted the three witnesses in front of him.

"Oh, um…hi, Alicia. Mitchie, you need to control that demon friend of yours."

* * *

**NOW**

Mitchie laughed and took off towards the cabin door.

"Caitlyn!" she called, as she entered the cabin, to see Caitlyn sitting on the bed with a nearly empty spray bottle.

"How far did you get before he went crazy?"

"He passed the car test and we were starting to make polite conversation," Caitlyn said.

"So what happened that he's soaking wet?"

"He said something about another girl," Caitlyn stated, crossing her arms.

"Oh, that's not good."

"Well, then I sprayed him, and he asked what he did wrong, so I tried to explain to him that you don't talk about other girls when you are on a date. Then he was all like, 'well, this isn't a real date and I was really telling you that I had to go see if Alicia was here.' And then I told him that he wasn't going anywhere until he passed the test and I sprayed him again for being rude.

"Then he started yelling at me so I sprayed him again, he asked why and I told him not to yell at girls. Then he threatened me because I was spraying him so much so I sprayed him again. Then he said that he wasn't serious about the threat so I got mad and poured most of the bottle on his head and he ran out."

Mitchie laughed thinking back to what Nate had said.

_I guess Caitlyn was a little cruel but she was just following orders…my orders. Oops. I should have been clearer on the whole water spraying thing…_

"I think you need to apologize either way. If you like him, dumping water on his head isn't gonna make him want to date you any more."

"I guess you're right," Caitlyn said, getting up and going to the door.

She was about to open it, when it was opened from the outside. Alicia walked in carrying a suitcase and a messenger bag.

"Oh, sorry didn't mean to scare you," Alicia commented, seeing Caitlyn jump back slightly.

Nate and Shane followed her in carrying two other enormous travel bags.

"It's no problem," Caitlyn said, recovering, "I'm Caitlyn, music production, you must be Alicia."

Caitlyn held out her hand and Alicia took it with a smile.

"Alicia McGilicuti, piano and guitar composition."

"That's cool, maybe we could lay down a set together," Caitlyn remarked, getting excited.

"Now, that we all know each other," Nate cut in, "how about a walk down to the beach, we have an hour until dinner."

"Actually, Nate, now that you mention the time," Mitchie said, looking slightly panicked, "I have to go find my mom and see if she needs anything before dinner."

Mitchie rushed out of the cabin, in the direction of her mother's day cabin.

_Mom's so lucky she gets to live at the house. I really wish I could sleep in my own bed. I guess it's a fair trade off if I have Caitlyn…and Alicia seems nice enough. I think she's right too… we'll be great friends. Maybe I should call Sierra tonight. Just let her know we got here ok…_

Mitchie reached the cabin and walked through the door.

"Mom," she called.

"Over here, in the bathroom, Mitchie, just fixing my hair so it doesn't get in my face while I'm cooking."

Mitchie walked over to Connie and waited for her to finish her hair.

"Do you need a lot of help with dinner?" she asked as her mom turned out the light.

"It shouldn't take long. Tonight is hot dogs, macaroni and cheese, and fries."

"Mmmm…I can't wait."

"Well you're gonna have to because I need you to boil the noodles and heat the buns."

"You got it," Mitchie said, pulling her hair back into a sloppy bun.

The two girls left the cabin and headed for the kitchen.

"Mitchie!" a familiar voice called out.

"Oh my gosh, Lola!" Mitchie said, turning to face the tall, African American, singer.

The two exchanged a hug.

"What cabin are you in?" Lola asked.

"Melody, you?"

"Rhythm."

"Who's in your cabin?" Mitchie asked.

Mrs. Torres cleared her throat.

"Save me a seat at dinner, we can talk then." Mitchie said, waving goodbye to Lola as she walked the remaining distance to the kitchen with her mom.

_I'm so happy I'm here. It doesn't even matter that I had to leave Sierra. I have my Mom, Caitlyn, Lola, Shane and Nate, (well…at least for tonight), that Alicia girl, and Dad's not too far away. My schedule seems…decent. It's gonna be a lot of work but half those classes are almost not classes at all. I would write or play guitar or piano in my free time anyway. My parents have been paying for lessons and now they are built into my schedule so I don't have to worry about it._

"Mitchie, can you fill these four pots three quarters full with water and get it to boil?" Connie interrupted Mitchie's thoughts.

"Sure, Mom," Mitchie said, doing what was asked of her.

"So, how is your first day going?" her mom asked, prying.

"So far, so good. I met another one of my room mates. Right now it looks like it's just the three of us."

"I saw you talking with Shane earlier. What was going on there?"

"Mom, if you want to pry, do it a little better. Just come out and ask your questions."

"Ok, is there something more than friendship between you and Shane?"

"No. I told him I didn't want to be in a relationship right now. That I needed to focus on school and that he needed to focus on his career."

"Really," Mrs. Torres said raising her eyebrows, "How very grown up of you."

"I learned from the best," Mitchie said, coming over to give her a hug, "Ok, so the water is boiling, what next?"

"Put the buns on a tray and put them in the warming drawer. Then set the warming drawer to low."

After Mitchie had done this, the water had begun to boil.

"How much of the noodles do you want in each pot?" Mitchie asked.

"About half a bag in the first two and then put hot dogs in the other two."

"Ok," Mitchie responded, filling the pots, while her mom pealed and sliced potatoes for her homemade fries.

Once she had finished, her mother allowed her to leave until dinner. It would be easier to get the fries done with out Mitchie trying to steal them off the tray.

Mitchie headed to the dock by the canoes. It was cooler now, and she wanted to go somewhere where she could just think.

She sat down and let her legs drag in the water.

_I can't believe all that has happened in just 24 hours. Yesterday I was in Hornsby, buying postage stamps and eating and ice cream cone with Sierra, and now I'm sitting in my favorite place of all looking out over the beautiful lake. Everything just seems so perfect._

"Hey," a voice said, making Mitchie jump slightly, "I thought I'd find you here. Shane told me this is where you spent most of your free time over the summer."

Mitchie turned to look at Nate. How did he know just the right things to do to be nice but could not grasp the concept of how to be appropriate.

"Yea, it's a great place to come and thing," she said quietly.

"So, how is life going for you? You've been though a lot in the last 24 hours."

"I was just thinking that very same thing."

"Great minds think a like," Nate said, taking a seat next to Mitchie on the dock, "Have you called your friends back home yet?"

"No, I haven't had a chance."

"Come on, we need to be getting to the mess hall and it probably isn't a good idea for you to be alone with me. You know, girls will talk and some how a paper will find out," he said getting to his feet and offering her a hand.

"Yea," she said, taking it and pulling herself up.

The two headed to the mess hall together as the sun stated to dip into the water on the other side of the lake.

* * *

**So... what did you think? I hope you liked it. Please review. Don't be afraid to be harsh either I want to know what you guys want to read.**


	12. Loss of Appetite

**OK I forgot to add this so if you already read the chapter that's cool. I just wanted to say that the songs that are used as ring tones in this chapter are by Superchick and the Beetles. Enjoy**

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LAST TIME

"Come on, we need to be getting to the mess hall and it probably isn't a good idea for you to be alone with me. You know, girls will talk and some how a paper will find out," he said getting to his feet and offering her a hand.

"Yea," she said, taking it and pulling herself up.

The two headed to the mess hall together as the sun stated to dip into the water on the other side of the lake.

**NOW**

Nate reached the door first and held it open for Mitchie to walk through. _Maybe some of the chivalry stuff did pay off in the end despite the fact that he is mad a Caitlyn._

They were early and not many people were sitting at the tables yet. Those who were had heard the door open and looked up to see Nate and Mitchie coming into the room.

Seeing the people staring, Mitchie headed toward the kitchen door. She did not like when people looked at her like that. It made her uncomfortable and gave her the feeling like crawling into a shell and staying there.

Then she spotted them… sitting at the table right in front of the kitchen door.

Caitlyn spotted her and waved her over. Caitlyn's movement made Shane turn to see who she was waving at and he waved to, but there was something about his expression that made Mitchie wonder. _Is he jealous…of Nate? There's nothing to be jealous of…oh…well, at least Caitlyn isn't glaring at me._

Mitchie came over and took a seat on the bench next to Shane.

"Hey," he said raping his arm around her and giving her a one armed hug, "how's my bestest buddy doing?"

"I'll admit this day has been too long, if it wasn't for the fact that you and Nate are around, I would ditch out on the meeting tonight. I already know what he's going to say," Mitchie said, imagining Brown standing on the temporary stage that was in the mess hall.

"_**Welcome to the first ever year of Camp Rock High. I'm your principle, teacher and camp director for the next ten months.**_

"_**We are so glad that you could come and join with us in what looks to be a rather exciting year. We have jam sessions coming up, fun classes with wonderful teachers, and a staff that is all about music.**_

"_**I shouldn't be telling you about the wonderful staff I should be showing you." Then he would list off the teachers one at a time they would come up to the stage, say something about the course they would be teaching and get off.**_

"So what's the deal with you and Nate?" Caitlyn asked, leaning toward Mitchie.

Mitchie looked around. She thought that Nate would have followed her to the table but it looked as though he had disappeared all together.

"Nothing," Mitchie said turning back to the table.

Shane looked happier after hearing that answer and Caitlyn seemed to relax a little too.

"Well, I got to go check and see if my mom needs any last minute help before dinner is served. I was gonna sit with Lola so if you guys could save us a couple seats that would be great," Mitchie pushed out of Shane's grasp and stood up.

"Actually," Shane said, getting up, "Since I'm not staff I can't eat with everyone else so I'll head back there with you."

Shane followed Mitchie through the door and into the kitchen. _The last time I was in this kitchen with Shane, I was covered in flour._

This thought made her giggle slightly.

"What?" Shane asked, with a questioning look.

"It's nothing," Mitchie responded.

"I was wondering when the great Shane Gray would show up for dinner," Mitchie's mom interrupted.

"Sorry, Mrs. Torres," Shane apologized, "I was talking with Caitlyn and I forgot that I wasn't at Camp Rock, the camp part that is."

"It's just fine, Jason just got here and Nate came in about five minutes ago. Why don't you take a seat on one of the stools by the work bench and I'll get you a plate."

"Thanks, Mrs. Torres."

"Shane, enough with the formalities, you called me Connie this summer, and nothing has changed. I'm still Connie."

Shane gave her a smile and walked over to where Nate and Jason were sitting.

"Are you eating in here tonight, Sweetie?" Mitchie's mom turned to her.

"No, I promised a friend I would sit with her, but I wanted to make sure you had everything covered."

"Yea, go, have fun and I don't need you tomorrow morning because it's cereal and toast. Sleep in and I'll see you at lunch tomorrow."

"Ok. Goodnight mom," Mitchie said, giving her mom a hug and heading back into the mess hall.

Caitlyn was still at the table, but this time she was not alone. Alicia was sitting with her on one side and Lola on the other.

"Hey, Mitchie," Lola smile up at Mitchie as she came and took a seat next to Alicia.

"Hey, so, how was your week? I didn't see you last week," Mitchie asked.

_It's weird to think that we have only been gone a week, it felt like forever._

"It was fun, trying to convince my parents to take me out of a free public school in New York to go to an expensive up scale, camp turned school more than to hours away by air."

"I can, empathize with that," Alicia spoke up, "Well…I had about four weeks to convince them, because Nate came home while I was hanging out with Sarah and he gave me a brochure."

"So, you know Nate?" Lola asked.

"Yea, his little sister and I are best friends."

"That's cool, so you have the inside scoop then."

"Well, actually, there's not much to scoop. He keeps to himself most of the time he's home and when he is loud and obnoxious to the point where it bugs Sarah, it's because Shane or Jason are over. He's actually really quiet."

At this Caitlyn started laughing.

"You're joking right? Because I spent the entire afternoon with him and he was just the opposite of quiet."

"That just means he's in his comfort zone here," Mitchie interrupted, "I mean, think about it, he came to this camp since he was a little boy, Shane and Jason are like brothers to him. He spends all his time on the road or in front of an audience. I don't know, for me home is a place that I spend a lot of time and I am comfortable. Maybe… maybe Nate feels the same way."

Caitlyn stared at her for a second.

"Wow, Mitchie, you're deep… I never thought of it that way," Lola commented.

"Hello, camp-I mean students! My name is Dee and I have some announcements about this evening."

The, now, crowed mess hall fell silent.

"Before you dig in I just wanted to let you know that there will be an orientation meeting in the Final Jam Theater. If you have attended camp here in the past, you are to come at nine, if you are new to the campus, please be in the theater promptly at seven. It would be a shame to have to start giving detentions before school actually starts on Monday. Thank you and here's Brown to explain how we eat here at Camp Rock High."

Dee passed the microphone to Brown.

"Hello, my wonderful musicians!"

There was a cheer around the room.

"I'm so glad to see you all here tonight but we'll discuss that at the meeting. Right now I'm here to talk to you about how we do food.

"Ok, if you haven't been here before, we serve buffet style. You will sit at your table until it is called to go up to the buffet. Start on the side closest to the kitchen and move down the table.

"Juice and other beverages will be in the dispensers on the counter in front of the kitchen. Unlike food, you can go for beverages at any point during the meal.

"Ok with that being said, enjoy the lovely meal prepared by our wonderful caterer Connie Torres."

Brown dismissed the four tables by the kitchen first and then sat down at the staff table.

"Oh…my…gosh!" Lola started, getting up to get food, "It's…it's…it's…"

"Shane's ex-girlfriend Rachel Anadeski," Alicia finished, seeing that Lola could not, and getting up as well.

Mitchie snapped her head up to the staff table. There she was her long, wavy, blonde locks to Mitchie. Even though she could not see her face, there was no mistaking that it was Rachel.

_Oh, no. Wasn't my guitar teacher an Anadeski? Well, there goes my grade… once she finds out I'm hanging out with her ex I'm dead meat…Relax, Mitchie, maybe it's her dad or something. Just because she is sitting at the staff table doesn't mean that she is staff, right?_

By the time Mitchie had reached the buffet table she had lost her appetite. She grabbed some fries and a ketchup packet and went back to the table. She knew that people would question if she wasn't eating and she would be hungry later so she sat down and began to slowly chew on her fries trying to hide her nerves.

As much as Mitchie tried to hide it, it didn't escape Caitlyn's attention that something was up. She gave Mitchie a questioning look. She had missed the conversation between Lola and Alicia. Mitchie shook her head and stood up.

She walked back into the kitchen trying to escape her thoughts by drowning them in dishwater. She had not realized that she had just walked into the other half of her problem.

There was Connect 3. Sitting on the stools in the kitchen eating their hot dogs and talking quietly. So far they had not noticed her and she wanted to keep it that way.

She slid through the door on the left and walked toward the monster machine grabbing the dirty dishes and pushing them through the machine.

_Why does she even have to be here? I came here because I wanted to be with people like me that cared about music. I guess she's no exception to that but does she really have to be Shane's ex-girlfriend. I love her music and I should be happy to be learning from her but Shane…how will he feel about me learning and being under the influence of his ex? Why did they break up anyway? Doesn't anyone know this information?_

Mitchie had finished the pre-dinner dishes. She turned off the monster and left the dish room, walking back into the kitchen.

"Hey," Shane said.

_Shoot, I've been spotted._

"Hi," Mitchie answered back.

"Is dinner over?" Jason asked.

"No, I… just wasn't very hungry."

Nate looked at Mitchie just as Caitlyn had. He could see right through her.

"I'll be right back," Nate said, sliding off the stool and walking out of the kitchen and onto the porch behind it.

'_You say goodbye and I say hello, hello hello. I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello. Hello hello, I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello'_

Mitchie jumped and pulled out her cell phone. She looked at it.

_**New text message:**_

_**Nate**_

Mitchie shook her head and opened the text.

_U don't have to tell Shane, but U gotta tell me. I'm not that gullible._

Mitchie shook her head again and sent a text back:

_It's nothing it's just that Rachel's here. She's teaching._

'_They said don't try to change the world, you're just a girl, so it's...me against the world today, I'm gonna do it my own way, and though nobody understands, I'm gonna make a one girl stand'_

Mitchie shook her head. If he didn't want to just ask in front of the guys he should have at least put his phone on silent.

"What!" Mitchie heard Nate yell out in shock.

He came back in and looked at Mitchie with a look that asked: "are you serious?"

She nodded.

He came over and gave her a hug seeing how nervous she was and understanding how that could be a problem.

Shane and Jason both stared at the two in confusion.

_No need to tell him now, he'll know soon enough. Maybe he won't have to know at all._

**What did you think? Please Review!**

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	13. Tears May Fall

**I am proud to say that this chapter is done! Ringtone by Taylor Swift (Rachel). I just want to clear the air that this is a SMITCHIE story but Nate and Mitchie are close friends. The brother and sister type. Nate has other intrests and Mitchie is definitly intrested in Shane. Enjoy!**

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LAST TIME

He came over and gave her a hug seeing how nervous she was and understanding how that could be a problem.

Shane and Jason both stared at the two in confusion.

_No need to tell him now, he'll know soon enough. Maybe he won't have to know at all._

**

* * *

**

NOW

When the boys had finished, they said goodbye to Mitchie and headed for the final jam stage to find out what Brown's plan was.

"Mitchie," Caitlyn said, walking into the kitchen with her arms crossed, "What's going on? You totally ditched out on Lola, Alicia, and me."

"Want to help me with dishes it's a long story," Mitchie replied, heading towards the dish room.

About an hour later, Caitlyn and Mitchie left the kitchen and decided to go back to the cabin and see if their final room mate had arrived.

When they got there, they found a note sitting on Mitchie's bed, but no Alicia, and no fourth room mate.

_Mitchie and Caitlyn- _

_Nate came by with Shane and they took me with them to see what Brown wanted. Sorry I didn't stay to explain but I knew you were busy catching up with Lola or somebody else. The boys told me to have you meet us at the Final Jam stage. _

_See you later, _

_Alicia _

_P.S. Our new cabin mate just got here too…Don't freak out yet but her last name is Anadeski. It's not Rachel, it's her little sister. She said that her sister would be teaching guitar! She dropped her stuff and went to hang with her sister. I guess when you're sister is a country star you don't see her much. _

Mitchie looked up from the note in horror. Not only was Shane's ex here but her sister was going to be with her every day whether they became friends or not.

She was trapped. _How can I talk to Caitlyn with Rachel and her sister crawling all over this camp? How am I supposed to keep a relationship…no matter what level it is with Shane if Rachel's sister is constantly gonna be here in the cabin... Maybe I'm paranoid. _

"Caitlyn, do you know what this means?" Mitchie said turning to Caitlyn.

"Yea, we have a country star for a guitar teacher and her sister is gonna be staying with us. Isn't that cool? Oh… wait a second…"

Caitlyn's face changed to an identical look of horror.

Mitchie whipped out her phone and texted Nate.

_Nate- _

_I think I need to tell Shane but I'll need ur help. I don't no if Alicia said NEthing because I think she's almost just as worried about it as I am 4 different reasons. I'll get the point…Rachel's sister is in my cabin! Help! _

"Come on," Caitlyn said, pulling Mitchie out the door, "You can talk to him in person."

Mitchie shrugged and allowed Caitlyn to drag her to the Final Jam stage.

When they got inside, they went directly to the front where they saw 4 people sitting on the edge of the stage. As they drew nearer, they identified them as Connect 3 and Alicia.

"Hey," Shane said, with a wave, jumping down from the stage and coming to give the girls a hug.

Jason, Nate, and Alicia waved from a distance.

"Listen, Shane, there's something you need to know…"

"If you are referring to the fact that my ex-girlfriend is here, I know," Shane cut her off, "I'm not blind. I don't care. I wouldn't have asked you to be my girlfriend if I still had feelings for her. I broke up with her so I could be with you; nothing is going to change that."

Shane pulled Mitchie into another hug.

"Well I guess you got most of it, but there's more," Mitchie replied, a little relieved.

"How can there be more?"

"Well, Rachel is going to be teaching a class…my class…"

"Relax, Mitchie. Think of yourself as lucky. She's a great musician; if you have her as a teacher you should be honored. Just because we broke up doesn't mean that she's a horrible person."

"Shane, do you watch Hot Tunes?"

"No, not really, why?"

"Rachel has been on there lately and she seems pretty upset about the whole break up. Does she know why you broke up with her?"

"Not exactly. I'm not going to break up with a girl by saying: 'Hey we've had some fun times but I'm falling for a camper so I'm going to break up with you so I can be with her.'"

Mitchie giggled. _I guess that would be pretty heartless. _

She composed herself and told Shane what else was going on. He was really calm about the whole thing, almost too calm.

"Shane, if any of this is bothering you, don't keep it pent up. You don't have to tell me but I'm here for you if you want to talk."

"Thanks Mitchie, I lo- I mean you're a great friend."

He gave her another hug and they headed back to the group.

"Yea, you're hair looks just fine, except for that piece of macaroni," Alicia was teasing Jason.

"Macaroni? Where?" Jason said, running his hands all over his head.

"I was kidding," Alicia said, doubling over in laugher along with the rest of the group.

'_Romeo take me somewhere, we can be alone. I'll be waiting; all there's left to do is run. You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess, It's a love story, baby, just say yes.' _

Shane pulled out his phone and stared at it moodily.

"Dude, you really need to change that ringtone," Nate commented.

"Or better yet, just delete her. She's not part of your life anymore," Jason said.

"Jason, she's still a good person. I'm not that heartless," Shane said, picking up the phone.

"Hello? - Yea I know you're here… I already told you we're better as friends… No, I… Rachel… Listen, I've moved on and you need to too… I have a girlfriend!"

Shane pressed the end button and shoved the phone into his pocket.

"Shane, are you ok?" Mitchie asked.

"If it isn't obvious enough the answer is know," he shot back, moodily.

He shook his head and walked out the back door towards the lake. He needed time to think.

The other five stood there in silence for a couple minutes.

Then the tears started to roll down Mitchie's face. _If he's so over her why is he so mad? Why did he yell at me? I was just trying to be there for him. _

She felt to pairs of arms come around her and hold her. She did not care whose arm was whose, she was just glad that she had friends that were there for her in all the drama.

Around 6:30 Mitchie decided that she had left Shane alone long enough and went down to the lake to find him.

There he sat, exactly where she thought he would be. On the dock by the canoes with his legs pulled to his chest. _He looks so calm. _

Mitchie walked up behind him and took a seat letting her flip-flopped feet dip into the water.

"Hey," she said, soothingly.

"I'm sorry," Shane answered.

"I know," Mitchie responded, looking over at him.

He was still looking at the lake, calmer than he had been since she had said anything about Rachel.

"I shouldn't flair out at you like that. That's the old me, and it hurts you. I don't want to hurt you."

"I know," Mitchie repeated.

He looked at her. Slight longing was visible in his eyes but he restrained himself. He knew Mitchie was right. She was not ready for another life changing event and being with her would only make it harder to leave.

"It's just that, Rachel doesn't understand that what we had wasn't more than a physical attraction. We were never super close and we had too many differences for it to last.

"Then you came along and you were perfect… You have the voice of an angel, and the mind of Beethoven. You are creative and funny and beautiful."

Shane faltered. What more could he say to make her understand that he cared about her more than he had cared for any other girl he had ever liked?

"That's sweet, Shane and when I'm ready, I'll let you say it again but please don't make this harder for me than it has to be.

"You are leaving tomorrow for a sold out world tour. You are going to be busy with music and fans. We'll keep in touch but it'll be easier if we're just friends. I promise. You'll get a ton of e-mails and texts and phone calls. I will not leave you in the dark."

Mitchie leaned over and gave him a hug.

_Mmm… he smells so good. Why am I not saying yes to his girlfriend proposal? Oh yes, because it would be too hard to say goodbye. Isn't it gonna be hard already? Mitchie! Stop trying to make it harder on yourself you need to be able to focus this semester! School is going to be tough enough without a boyfriend._

"Go," Mitchie said, as they broke apart, "You need to get back to the theater. It's five to seven."

Shane stood, helped Mitchie up, gave her one small, peck on the cheek and left for the Final Jam Theater.

The feeling of Shane's lips lingered on her cheek for a second, sending her into a daze.

"Ahh! Mitchie!" a voice screamed.

"Ella!" Mitchie yelled, jumping up and down as the short Asian ran to the dock and gave her a hug.

_Did she see me and Shane? _

"How are you? How was your week? Who's in your cabin? What cabin are you in? Is your mom catering? I love her food. Was that Shane I just saw walking away from here? Is he staying? What classes are you taking?"

"Ella, relax, take a deep breath. Ok, I'll answer your questions one at a time. I'm doing ok. My entire family moved down here so we could stay together while I was at school.

"My week was busy. I had to pack up my entire life and say goodbye to a close friend.

"Caitlyn is in my cabin with two other girls. I don't know them but I'll introduce you to the one that I met earlier when I see her.

"Yes, my mom is catering. I'll be helping her again too so she'll be around.

"Shane is here, but he's not staying. Connect 3 has a world tour starting tomorrow so they are saying hello and then leaving.

"My schedule is pretty packed. I'll bring it to the meeting tonight and we can compare them.

Now, how are you?"

"I'm pretty awesome. I just talked to Peggy and she said that she will be coming up tomorrow. I talked to Tess to and she said that she's going to come visit while she's touring here in Arkansas."

"Who's in your cabin?"

"Right now it's just Lola, but Peggy will be in there and two new girls are too. Katie Miami and Amy Jonas."

"That's cool. I'm headed back to the cabin. You want to come?"

"Sure. Let me just call Lola and have her meet us at your cabin."

"Sounds good," Mitchie said.

_Wow, this is going to be a great year. No matter how much I miss Sierra and Shane. Sierra…_

The girl reached the cabin and opened the door. Caitlyn shrieked and ran over to Ella pulling her into a hug.

"Ella, hi. How are you?"

"I'm good," Ella said, breaking away from Caitlyn, who must have been in the middle of changing, judging by the one arm in her shirt and the one arm out.

"I'll be right back," Mitchie excused herself and left the cabin.

She could faintly here what was going on inside when she stopped and sat down on the steps.

She pulled out her phone and dialed the familiar number she had known since she was six.

It ran twice and some one answered.

"Hello," a low voice said.

"Hey, Larry, is Sierra there?"

"Uh, yea, hang on. SIERRA PHONE!"

Mitchie pulled her ear away from the phone and brought it back when she heard a familiar voice say hello.

_Hello?_

"Hey, Sierra It's Mitchie."

_Hey, Mitchie, what's up?_

"I just wanted to let you know that I got to school ok. I miss you already."

There was a sniffle on the other side of the phone.

_I miss you too. Thanks for calling. I got to go…John is moving into your old house right now and I promised I'd help._

"Ok," Mitchie said, a little upset.

_Bye Mitchie I'll call you tomorrow._

"I'm counting on it. Bye."

Mitchie put her phone away and walked back into the cabin and sat sadly down on her bed.

"What's wrong, Mitchie?" Caitlyn asked.

"I just called Sierra, and she seemed too busy to talk to me. I think I'm loosing her."

Caitlyn and Ella sat down on both sides of Mitchie and held her while she broke down for the second time that day.

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**So what do you think? I know, I know, the end is kinda sad but this is what really happens in life. People do drift apart. It's not like they are trying to either. Please review!**


	14. Tours and Introductions

**Ok. So this might be the last chapter for awhile. I hope you enjoy it for what it's worth. The song that is used is from the movie. Thanks for all the reviews! I hope Amy and Katie caught their names. Thanks to my dedicated fans!**

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LAST TIME

"What's wrong, Mitchie?" Caitlyn asked.

"I just called Sierra, and she seemed too busy to talk to me. I think I'm loosing her."

Caitlyn and Ella sat down on both sides of Mitchie and held her while she broke down for the second time that day.

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**NOW**

At ten minutes to nine, all four girls, Mitchie, Caitlyn, Ella, and Lola left the cabin and began their journey to the Final Jam Theater. Mitchie was feeling a lot better and was animatedly talking with the other girls as they walked into the theater.

She looked up at the stage and fell silent. Caitlyn looked up to see what had stopped Mitchie to see all of the people on staff sitting on the stage in chairs. She looked from left to right and in the last chair Rachel was sitting talking quietly with Mrs. Torres.

Caitlyn rubbed Mitchie's back showing her some support and pulled her into the last row with the other girls.

"Mitchie," she heard a whisper from behind.

"What?" she asked turning her head to face Brown.

"I was wondering if you and your friends would be interested in giving tours to people new to the campus."

"Yea, sure. It would be our pleasure."

He handed her a four flash lights and colorful maps that high lighted the new places at camp that had not been there a week before.

"We're going to split the students up in about fifteen minutes and you will each take a group around the campus and show the students around. Be back here around ten thirty. Oh, and your mum wants to see you before you go to bed tonight."

"Ok, thanks, Brown," Mitchie answered turning forward and passing out the maps and flashlights, whispering instructions.

At exactly nine o'clock, Brown came up to the front of the stage with a microphone and began the orientation.

"Hello, Camp Rockers!"

There was a loud scream in response.

"I'm so glad you could all make it here to Camp Rock High School of Performing Arts. The staff and I can not wait to get started with all the fun activities and classes we have prepared for you tonight.

"For those of you who don't know me, call me Brown. My partner in crime is Dee," Brown said.

Dee got up and waved.

"She and I will be around, teaching and enforcing rules only when necessary. Next to Dee is our English teacher Mr. Ryan Brookram. He will be teaching Introduction to Literature, World Literature, American Literature, Creative Writing, Expository Writing, Multicultural Literature, along with many, many more classes.

"Next Mr. Brookram is the lovely Ms. Carolina Catsing. She will be your dance teacher. She will be teaching hip hop, alterative, modern, ballet, and many other classes that will get you all into shape for any type of choreography that would be needed later in any type of musical or perform art form you go into.

"Next to Ms. Catsing is the talented Ms. Bella Swiff. She will be teaching a writing class of a different sort. Lyrics. They are fundamental for music of many sorts. Most of the work will start as poetry and then evolve into something more.

"Next Ms. Swiff is our professional language instructor Sr. Dominguez. He specializes in Spanish but is also fluent in English, Russian, French, and Italian.

"Ms. Spray will be teaching our music production class and showing you how to take your music to the next level.

"Mr. Demicon will be teaching the history portion of the curriculum. He will be teaching Integrated Social Science, World History, American History, and War and Conflict. He has been teaching history for quite a while and has hand on experience with his subject.

"Ms. Summit will be teaching piano to many different levels of students. She will give hands on teaching and also is there to help you with your personal compositions if you are struggling.

"Mr. Levalo will be taking on our math classes. He will be teaching Algebra one and two, Geometry, Functions, Trigonometry, Statistics, and Calculus.

"Ms. Torres is our lovely cook and has also offered to give cooking lessons at seven o'clock on Thursday nights if anyone is interested.

"Mr. Jackson Polish will be teaching voice lessons. He will be working with range, tone and strength of your voices.

"And last but certainly not least, Rachel Anadeski will be teaching our guitar classes. With her hands on experience, you will learn more than any theory teacher could teach you.

"Now that you know your teachers, you will need to know where to be for your lessons. I have asked some of our past campers to show you around to the rooms you will be in for classes.

"You were handed a card when you came in with a number on it.

"May I have my volunteers up here?"

Mitchie, Ella, Caitlyn, and Lola got up and went to the stage.

"Ones will be with Mitchie."

Mitchie waved her hand at the new students

"Why don't you all head out of here."

Mitchie walked back to the back and out the door. She turned on her flash light and waited until her group came out. On the back of her map there was a note that said that she would have about ten students to look after and that she was to collect their cards and escort them around camp starting in the direction of the cabins.

_This is going to be a piece of cake._

"Ok. Everyone, could you please form a line and hand me your cards?"

The students did so. She looked at the students faces as they handed in their cards so that she would be able to round them back up if they started to scatter.

There was one girl talking to Alicia who looked slightly like Rachel. _Is that Abigail? I think that's what her name is. Stupid tabloids. It must be hard to be the sister of a celebrity._

"Do I have everyone's card?"

Mitchie deducted the answer from the silence that met her ears.

"Ok, let's get going then."

Mitchie walked towards the girls cabins.

"This is the girl's cabin area. Boys, take one good look at it because this is the last time you will see it until moving day."

A couple of people snickered while others groaned.

"Moving on," Mitchie said, walking in the direction of the boy's cabins, "This is the boy's cabin area. Girls, like the boys, you are not allowed in this area without authorization from a teacher. Any questions?"

The girl that looked like Rachel raised her hand.

"Yes?" Mitchie asked pointing to her.

"What if you have a sibling of the opposite sex?"

"Good question. It doesn't matter if they are related to you. You aren't allowed in their cabin area. It's just a safety measure. Any more questions?"

She looked around and saw none so she continued with the tour following the trails she knew so well.

Around ten thirty the group had made their way back to the Final Jam Theater and returned to their seats.

"How did the tour go Camp Rockers?"

There was a loud cheer in response to Brown's question.

"Great. Well we have one more thing for you tonight, but if you are too tired we could skip it and let you all go to bed early."

There were more cheers.

"Alright, well put your hands together for my nephew and his band CONNECT 3!"

The room abounded in screams as Jason, Nate, and Shane came out on stage.

"Hey guys!" Jason yelled into the microphone, "This is a little song Shane wrote over this summer while he was here."

_Turn on that radio, as loud as it can go. Wanna dance until my feet can't feel the ground. Say goodbye to all my fears, one good song and they disappear, and nothing in the world can bring me down._

Hand Clapping, Hip Shaking, Heart Breaking. There's no faking, what you feel, when you're right at home, yeah.

_  
Music's in my soul, I can hear it every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go. No, no. I just want to play my music, Woo._

Got my six string on my back, don't need anything but that. Everything I want is here with me. So forget that fancy car, I don't need to go that far. What's driving me is following my dreams, Yeah.

Hand Clapping, Hip Shaking, Heart Breaking. There's no faking, what you feel, when you're on a roll, yeah.

Music's in my soul, I can hear it every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go. No, no. I just want to play my music, Woo.

_  
Music's in my soul, I can hear it every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go. No, no. _

_  
I just want to play my music, I just want to play my music._

Can't imagine what it'd be like, without the sounds of all my heroes singing all my favorite songs, so I can sing along.

Music's in my soul, I can hear it every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go. No, no. I just want to play my music, Woo.

_  
Music's in my soul, I can hear it every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go. No, no. I just want to play my music._

Music's in my soul, I can hear it every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go. No, no. I just want to play my music, all night long.

The crowd began to scream again.

After four more songs, Brown came back up to the microphone and thanked the boys for coming. Then he dismissed the students who all headed back to their cabins to get ready for bed.

Mitchie did her best to weave through the crowd back up to the stage.

"Mom," she yelled as she reached it.

Her mom came to the front of the stage and kneeled down at the edge.

"Hey Mitchie, I know I said I didn't need to see you until lunch tomorrow but I remembered what day of the week it was and I was thinking that we should go to church with your father."

"Oh, I hadn't thought about it. I guess we should go."

"I thought you'd say that so I called your father and he found a nice little church about fifteen minutes away and he said he would meet us there."

"Cool. What time do I have to be at the van?"

"I'll pick you up at the cabin around eight. If Caitlyn of any of your cabin mates want to come there is plenty of room in the van."

"Ok, Mom."

"I'm not gonna keep you any longer. I'm heading home, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Ok, Mom. Love you, bye."

Mitchie walked back in the direction of the door. She bumped into someone knocking them to the ground.

"Oh, sorry, my bad," Mitchie said, helping the girl off the floor.

She saw her face. It was the girl that looked like Rachel. _Wow, twice in one day. I must have a reason to know her._

"I'm Mitchie," Mitchie said, holding out her hand.

"Abby," the girl replied taking it.

"Nice to meet you. What cabin are you in?"

"Melody. You?"

"Melody, also."

"Are you in a rush because I kind of need help finding a teacher's cabin?"

"Oh, no. I can help you. What cabin are you looking for?"

"Ms. Anadeski's. She's actually my sister."

_What! I was right! How am I going to be able to be open when she's in my cabin? Maybe she's not really close with her sister. I mean, Rachel has been on the road for the past two years and Abigail didn't go with._

"That's cool," Mitchie responded trying not to sound over interested.

The girls left the Final Jam Theater and headed in the direction of the teachers cabins.

"So, do you have any siblings?" Abby asked.

"No. Just me and my parents."

"That's cool."

"I had a really close friend growing up though. She and I are like sisters, but I moved away to come up here and I'm not sure that we can stay friends with the distance between us."

"I'm sorry to here that. I was away from my sister for two years while she was on tour and it was really hard."

"Are you two close?"

"Yea, I mean, we were closer but then she went touring. I guess we're still close enough for me to be the person she called when she broke up with Shane."

_Oh… my… gosh…this isn't good. What am I going to do? Just stay calm, Mitchie. She never has to know that you were the reason that they broke up._

"That's cool. Sierra is the one I told everything to. She was the first one to know I was coming up to camp and she was the last one to see me before I moved this morning."

"You moved this morning? And you still came to camp? Wow you are very strong."

"I have my moments of weakness."

"Everyone does. Even Rachel."

At this point they reached the cabin. Abigail went up to the door and knocked.

"Well I should probably go and let you have time with your sister," Mitchie said, rubbing her arms.

"No, I want her to meet my new friend."

"Oh…Ok."

Rachel opened the door.

"Abby, hey, come on in."

Abigail walked in and pulled Mitchie with her.

"I just came by to grab the sweatshirt you borrowed."

"Oh, yea. I almost forgot."

Rachel turned and walked over to the bed. She picked up the sweatshirt that was lying under her guitar and brought it over to Abigail.

"Here you go. Who's this?" Rachel asked, recognizing Mitchie's presence.

"Oh, this is Mitchie. She was my tour guide and she'll be in my cabin."

"Oh, that's cool. Nice to meet you," Rachel said, putting out her hand.

"Nice to meet you too. I'm a big fan."

"Oh, please I'm nothing big," Rachel brushed it off, "Well you girls better get off to bed. Oh, Abby. I talked to some one who said that they could give us a ride tomorrow morning. She said she'd pick you up at your cabin and then come for me."

"Ok. Good night Rach," Abigail replied giving Rachel a hug.

"Night, lil sis."

Mitchie and Abigail left Rachel's cabin and walked back to their own quietly.

They walked in to find Caitlyn and Alicia already fast asleep.

"I'll be right back," Mitchie said, grabbing some clothes and slipping into the bathroom.

After she was ready for bed, she came out of the bathroom and walked strait to her bed.

"Good night, Abby," she said before falling out of consciousness.

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**So...how was it? Please review even if you don't have an account I really want to know who's reading my story. Peace out. Lacey**


	15. Hard Goodbyes and Almost Uhohs

**I'm finally updating because it's finally the weekend. This week has been really busy so I'm sorry I haven't updated since Monday. My schedual has been insane. Ring tone by Rose Falcon and Superchick. Look them up their really good. (Up, Up, Up-Rose Falcon)(Me Against the World-Superchick) Enjoy and leave a comment or two or three.**

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LAST TIME

"I'll be right back," Mitchie said, grabbing some clothes and slipping into the bathroom.

After she was ready for bed, she came out of the bathroom and walked strait to her bed.

"Good night, Abby," she said before falling out of consciousness.

* * *

**NOW**

'_Hey you, don't let 'em see you frown, Come on turn it upside down. Don't ever quit, get up, get up. When life, puts you to the test, there's nothing better than your best. Show 'em what you got, you got a lot. Show 'em what you got, get up, get up. Get up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up.'_

"Ug…"

Mitchie woke up to her cell phone alarm and looked at the time. 7:30 AM.

_Maybe I can just sleep in for five more minutes…I'll get ready for church after that…_

'_They said don't try to change the world, You're just a girl, so it's...me against the world today, I'm gonna do it my own way, and though nobody understands, I'm gonna make a one girl stand'_

_Ug…who is calling me this early? There is only one person in the world up at this hour… Sierra…_

Mitchie gave up on sleeping in and answered her phone.

"Hello," she answered groggily, rubbing her eyes.

_Rise and Shine, Sunshine!_

"Sierra, do you think you could have waited at least fifteen more minutes before you called."

_I could have, but now you're up and I have some great news!_

"What's your news?" Mitchie asked, sitting up and looking around for her flip-flops.

_I'm coming to visit you in two weeks!_

"What!?" Mitchie yelled suddenly awake.

"Huh? What's going on?" Caitlyn said, waking up because of Mitchie's voice.

"Um… Nothing, just go back to sleep."

"Ok, Mommy."

Two seconds later soft relaxed breath could be heard from Caitlyn's bed.

Sierra giggled.

_Did your roommate just call you mommy?_

"Ha, yea. She tends to call people that when she's half asleep."

Mitchie got up from her bed, grabbed a skirt, top and her shower stuff and headed for the bathroom.

_So, how's your cabin?_

"They're really great actually. Caitlyn is here with me and the other two seem really nice."

_That's cool. Any evil celebrity's kid you have to watch out for?_

"No, not yet. Actually, I think that would be the least of my worries."

_What do you mean?_

"Shane's ex is my guitar instructor."

_Oh._

"_And_… her sister is in my cabin."

_I thought you said that your cabin was nice?_

"Oh, it is but I can't be open here while she's around."

By this time Mitchie had made it to the bathroom and closed the door.

_I got to go. Mom wants to get to church early to show John's parents around._

"Yea, my mom is picking me up for church in an hour and I haven't even showered yet."

_Ok, well, I'll let you do that. Call me when you get home from church and we can talk when Rachel's sister isn't around._

"Sounds great. Talk to you later. Bye"

_Bye._

Mitchie put her phone on the counter and got ready for church. She was leaving the bathroom when she bumped into me.

"Oh, sorry Abby, I didn't see you there."

"It's ok. No harm done."

Abby proceeded into the bathroom and closed the door. Mitchie went back to her dresser and put her shower stuff down.

She looked around the room. Her eyes feel on Alicia's empty bed and a note on her own pillow.

_Mitchie-_

_Heard your alarm. Great song by the way, I'm a big Superchick fan. So, I got up and decided to go for a walk around camp and say goodbye to Nate, Jason, and Shane. My cousin lives in town and is taking me to her church. I'll be back around one. See you then._

_-Alicia_

_Oh…my… gosh. I completely forgot that Shane is leaving this morning._

Mitchie slipped her flip-flops on and ran out the door in the direction of Brown's cabin. Out front was a giant tour bus with Connect 3's logo on the side.

_Oh, no. _Did_ I miss my chance?_

"Why do you look so down?" a voice came from behind her.

"I think I missed my chance to say goodbye to Jason, Shane, and Na…Oh, hey Jason," Mitchie smiled, turning around.

"Hey," Jason said, returning the smile, "Actually, your mom begged us to let her make us breakfast before we left so Shane and Nate are on their way to the mess hall. I forgot my cell phone in Brown's cabin."

"Thanks, Jason. I'm gonna head up there. I'll see you later."

"Bye, Mitchie." Jason waved as he walked away.

Mitchie turned around and headed towards the mess hall.

"Mitchie," another voice called out.

Mitchie turned to see Abby dressed formally also sporting flip-flops.

"Where are you going?"

"Oh, my mom wanted to see me this morning," Mitchie lied, "She needs help with the…lunch menu…yea, the lunch menu."

"Oh, ok. Mind if I join you? I just need to borrow Rachel's hairdryer. I guess I left mine at home by accident. I called her and she said to meet me in the mess hall."

"Oh... Yea that's fine."

_Oh, my gosh! What am I gonna do, what am I gonna do, what am I gonna do? I can't just call Nate or Shane to warn them, not with Abby right here. I can't even text them because I have too many manners. Grr… what I would give to be able to be impolite, just once._

The girls continued to the mess hall together. Abby saw her sister through the window and walked in the main door to talk to her, saying goodbye to Mitchie.

_Yes! They decided to eat with mom! That could have been horrible._

Mitchie proceeded to the back door where she could here voices talking animatedly.

"And then, she was like, I'm your biggest fan and she tried to kiss me."

Shane laughed.

"Man, I wish I had been there," Shane said in response to Nate's comment.

"Dude, no you don't. Her best friend was even worse but she was into you."

Shane had a look of terror on his face.

Mitchie laughed at it bringing attention to her new presence in the room.

"Hey, Mitchie," both boys said together.

"Good morning boys," Mitchie answered a little less enthusiastic than what she had been going for.

Shane gave her an odd look.

"Abby wanted to walk up here with me. Rachel and she are in the main mess hall right now."

"Ah. I see," Nate said, apparently as confused as Shane had been.

"Did you see Jason when you were coming up by chance?" Shane asked, changing the subject.

"Yea, he said that he'd be up in a couple minutes. He just needed to grab his cell…"

"Did you miss me?"

"…phone," Mitchie faltered, starting to laugh.

"What a coincidence!" Nate said, "We were just wondering where you were."

"Dude, I'm right here."

"I know man, I know," Nate replied.

Sometimes Jason had his moments of brilliance. Now, just was not one of those times.

"So, what's for breakfast?" Mitchie asked looking at their almost empty plates.

"For you, nothing here. For them eggs," Mrs. Torres said, popping out from the dish room.

"Why not me?"

"We are going out to breakfast with Rachel and her sister."

"WHAT!?" three voices shot out.

"what?" Jason asked, confused as to what was going on.

Again, not one of his brightest moments.

"Mitchie, our friend, is going out to breakfast with her mom, Rachel, Shane's ex-girlfriend and Abby," Nate explained slowly, "Shane and Mitchie like each other."

"Oh… I don't get it," Jason answered.

"It's going to be awkward for Mitchie," Shane added.

"Ok. I think I get it."

"Call me if something goes wrong. I need to know what she knows."

"Relax, kids, nothing is going to go wrong. You three are leaving today, and Rachel is staying right here with Mitchie and me. Brown won't let anything go wrong in his watch. Especially, teacher to student. Besides, she doesn't even know you four are connected. Well, she knows that you three are or your band wouldn't be Connect three, but you know what I mean," Connie remarked trying to lighten the mood.

"Thanks Connie, that helps a little. Just don't forget, I was still aloud to fight with Mitchie when I was a counselor up here this summer."

"True, but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. You guys better get going. The camp will wake up and you'll never get out."

"Good point," Nate said standing up, "Come on, guys. We need to go."

With a heavy heart, Mitchie said goodbye to the boys, hugging each of them and beginning to cry.

"Don't worry Mitchie," Shane said soothingly, "This isn't really goodbye. It's more like, see you around Christmas. Brown is having the family here, so I'll be back in no time."

Mitchie nodded giving him one last hug. They broke apart and the boys left.

"Connie," Rachel said bursting though the door.

Mitchie quickly wiped the tears from her eyes.

"Yes, Rachel?" Connie asked, taking Rachel's full attention before she saw that Mitchie was crying.

"I just wanted to let you know that Abby is heading back to her cabin now, so when you're ready, we're ready to go."

Mitchie slipped out the back door as Mrs. Torres and Rachel talked.

_Did she see them? Did she see me crying? Where am I going? I can't go back to the cabin…even if I pulled myself together, my eyes are bloodshot and my makeup is smeared._

Mitchie pulled out her phone and texted Caitlyn. She walked in the direction of her mom's day cabin.

_Caitlyn-_

_I need makeup help pronto. My mom's cabin._

_-Mitchie_

Within three minutes, Caitlyn was at the cabin with a makeup case in hand.

"What happened?" she asked, but Mitchie's face said it all.

Caitlyn gave her a hug.

"It's gonna be ok."

The girls pulled apart and Caitlyn quickly fixed Mitchie's makeup.

After Mitchie looked better, the girls headed back to their own cabin. Mitchie's mom's van was already parked in front of the cabin.

_Oops. I guess we took longer than I thought._

"Mitchie, you ready?" Mrs. Torres asked out the window.

"Yea, let me grab my Bible and I'll be right out."

Mitchie followed Caitlyn into the cabin, grabbed her Bible and her cell phone, hoping she would not need the latter. She said goodbye to Caitlyn telling her where she would be and also giving her the note Alicia had left and left.

When Mitchie got into the car, it was fuller than she thought it would be. Rachel and Abby were there, but so were Sander and Barron.

"Sup, Mitchie?" Sander said, nodding in her direction.

"I didn't know you went to church."

"Yea, Sander and I go every Sunday, when we're not here. It's really cool of your mom to drive us," Barron responded.

"Yea. I think I'll keep her," Mitchie joked.

She looked around to see who she was sitting next to as the van started moving.

"Hey, Abby. Why so blue?"

"My sister was complaining about Shane again this morning. Even wrote a pretty decent song about him a couple of weeks ago. I just can't wait until she's over him completely. All she wants to talk about is how he's not good enough for her and how he's a jerk. Today she says that he already has a new girlfriend. There is no way he found someone that fast. He's been at camp all summer long and the only people he talked to were his campers."

Mitchie laughed uneasily.

"Yea. I totally get what you mean. Who would the great Shane Gray fall for? Tess?"

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**Dun dun duuuun. What do you think is going to happen next? You are as clueless as I am because it's not written yet. Thanks for reading! Please Review! ~Lacey**


	16. Red Handed

**Ok. This is the last chapter for this week. I know you want more but I have so much school work that I can only write on weekends. You will love me for this chapter. It answers a lot of questions. Sorry, Katie, it doesn't answer one of the ones you asked a couple chapters back but I'll address that soon. I promise. Enjoy!**

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LAST TIME

Today she says that he already has a new girlfriend. There is no way he found someone that fast. He's been at camp all summer long and the only people he talked to were his campers."

Mitchie laughed uneasily.

"Yea. I totally get what you mean. Who would the great Shane Gray fall for? Tess?"

* * *

**NOW**

Mrs. Torres pulled into a restaurant parking lot and parked.

"Now, before you get out. I want to lay some ground rules," Connie began, "Number one, I'll bring you to church as long as you want if you behave and don't get into trouble at school. Brown made it very clear that this was an incentive and only allowed to people who really cared. Number two, we will go out to breakfast every Sunday, go to church, that includes Sunday school, and then go back to my house for lunch. Make sure you are where you are supposed to be, when you are supposed to be there, doing what you are supposed to be doing. I don't what to have to track you down when we are ready to go. Number three, I have limited space in my van, but if you want to invite friends to church from school I can arrange more rides.

"Ok, we can go in now."

Mitchie opened the van door quickly and got out.

_That was the most awkward thing I have done since I got here. What's going to happen when Abby finds out I am the "girlfriend" Shane was referring to? I should probably ask Shane about that. Now that she brought it up, I don't really feel comfortable with that lie if I told Shane I wasn't ready for a relationship._

Once everyone was inside and seated at a big table, Mitchie excused herself and went to the bathroom.

She pulled out her phone and dialed Shane's number. It rang three times and he picked up.

_Hey Mitchie. Things bad already?_

"No, it's just that I needed to talk to you about something you told Rachel over the phone yesterday."

Mitchie heard Shane sigh.

_This is about the girlfriend thing, isn't it? Before you go saying stuff about us just being friends, here me out._

"Fine."

_I told her that to get her off the phone. I know you aren't ready for a relationship yet but you did say that you would when you got settled so it's not like I completely lied._

"Yea, but Abby and I were talking and she said that she can't stand the fact that her sister is upset about the fact that you already have a girlfriend and then she started saying things about how you couldn't have met anyone because you were at camp the whole summer."

_So, what did you say?_

"I laughed it off best I could and said something about Tess."

_What? You know I would never like her that way, right?_

"I know but it was the first thing I could think of."

_I really wish you hadn't because Tess's mom is our opening act for the first month and Tess is with her…Don't get mad but…_

"What! Are you serious? That is awesome. I know I didn't like Tess this summer but we smoothed things over and we're cool now. Is she with you? Can I talk to her?"

_No. I'm not with her right now. They stopped for breakfast at a nice little restaurant right outside of camp. There is something you got to know._

"What?"

_I wanted to cover the whole press thing about what I said to Rachel because I knew she would tell people…so I… I kinda asked Tess to be my fake girlfriend while we are on the road._

"WHAT!?"

_Mitchie, it's not like we are really together and I told her that I was into you and that it was gonna happen between us and not between she and I. She completely understands and she wanted to talk to you about it but she didn't have your number._

"Why didn't you give it to her?"

_Well, we were talking about it when we met up with her mom's tour bus this morning, but then…_

"Paparazzi?"

Shane gave a shaky laugh.

"It's ok, I guess it makes sense, but you should have told me your plan. Now I just told Abby basically that I knew you had a new thing with Tess. How am I going to explain that when the press gets a hold of your 'new love interest'?"

_I'm sorry Mitchie. Here, how about I give you her number and you two can work it all out. At least I was able to tell you the plan before the press put it on paper._

"I guess that's true. Ok, so what is her number?"

Shane gave Mitchie the number and she wrote it down on a piece of toilet paper and stuck it in her purse. Someone was coming into the bathroom so Mitchie said a quick goodbye and hung up.

"Mitchie? Are you ok?" Abby's voice asked from the other side of the stall door.

"Yea, I'll be out in a second."

"Ok, well your mom was getting worried. Oh, you'll never guess who's here!"

"Who?"

"TJ Tyler and her daughter!"

"WHAT?"

"Yea, she walked in about two minutes after we did. It's quite a coincidence that Tess would show up here right after we were talking about her, right?"

Mitchie left the stall. Slightly in shock. She washed her hands to keep up with her charade and left the bathroom with Abby following behind her.

"Hey, Abby?"

"Yea?"

"Did she see my mom?"

"Yea. She waved and asked where you were. That's when your mom started to worry about where you went so I got up and came to look for you. Why?"

"Oh. No reason."

By this time they were back at the table and the girls took their seats.

Not a moment later a waitress came up and took their orders.

It was odd, she seemed a bit frazzled and she slipped Mitchie a note.

_That's odd. Why would anyone be handing me a note in a restaurant that no one knows I'm in. We're in the middle of no where and someone I don't know is handing me a…so that's why the waitress is frazzled. Tess gave this to her._

Mitchie opened the piece of paper being unnoticed by everyone else at the table.

_Call Shane._ That was all it said. Mitchie turned it over and wrote back. _I did, he told me to call you._

The waitress came back a couple minutes later with the drinks that everyone had ordered. Mitchie smiled and slipped her the note back as she took the drink from the waitress. No one seemed to be paying any attention to this. Except…Abby.

She was sitting next to Mitchie and had read the note as she had been given it. As much as Mitchie thought she was going unnoticed, she was not

Abby was not going to say anything. She liked Mitchie and did not care that she was friends with her sister's ex-boyfriend. In fact, she was hoping that Mitchie would be a way to let her emotions about Rachel and her annoying habit of singing and talking about her ex-boyfriends.

It was a while before the waitress found an excuse to come back to the table. Everyone was enjoying themselves and talking about how excited they were for the new school year and how worried they were about the schedule.

Rachel even confided in the group that she was worried about her first day of teaching. She may be able to sing songs in front of millions of people but she could not stand in front of a class full of teenagers.

Barron and Sander had told her that it was no being deal and that they were probably going to be her worst students. This had gotten everyone laughing as the waitress came back to the table with their food orders.

She placed everyone's food in front of them and did not place Mitchie's until last. Now she finally saw Rachel at the table and had started to freak out. This gave Mitchie a chance to slip the piece of paper out from under her plate.

_I feel really weird about this. I just want to make sure you are ok with it because I don't want to take your spot light._ Mitchie laughed a little at the end of the last sentence.

_It's ok as long as you don't kiss him. That would be really bad. Caitlyn would come after you more that I would. Trust me; you don't want to be on Caitlyn's bad side again. Keep me informed if things end up in the media. I'll only see things on weekends and online so you and Shane need to let me know._ Mitchie finished the last sentence and looked up to see that the waitress had left and Abby was reading over her shoulder.

_Oh, no. I'm caught. This is the end. I have just lost a new friend and I will fail a class. Well, things could be worse. Rachel could be the one looking at this note and freaking out. Wait, why isn't Abigail freaking out?_

Mitchie gave Abigail a weird look as Abigail looked away and flagged down the waitress. She grabbed the note out of Mitchie's hand and her cup and asked for a refill. The waitress obliged and walked away.

Mitchie took a napkin from the stack in the center of the table.

_Why are you being so nice? I thought you would hate me about this._

She handed it to Abigail. Abigail read it, wrote something and handed it back to Mitchie. Rachel saw the exchange this time. Abigail wasn't as good at it as everyone else.

Rachel took the napkin from Mitchie. "Secrets, secrets are no fun, secrets share with everyone," she said looking down at the writing on it.

Her face changed it was replaced with confusion. She handed the note back to Mitchie without question and went back to her food.

_Huh? What was that about? I would have thought she would have been mad or something, but not confused._

Mitchie looked down at the napkin. _I'm sick of her complaining and I would rather see him with someone else anyway. I understand why you didn't tell me you knew him and I don't blame you._

Mitchie understood. Rachel had not. She did not know who "she" was or who "he" was so she had decided not to bother with the note.

Breakfast came to an end about fifteen minutes later with out any more notes. Everyone paid their fair share of the check and the group headed back to the van.

"Mitchie!" a voice called from the door.

Mitchie turned to see Tess. She ran back and gave her a hug.

"Are you sure about this?" she whispered into Mitchie's ear.

"Yea, just be prepared to 'break up' with him when I give you the signal. Ok?"

Tess nodded and handed her a sheet of paper.

"It's the schedule," she explained, "So you know when he's on stage."

Mitchie said thanks and goodbye. She gave her another hug and went to the van. Glad she did not have to hide her excitement from Abigail.

* * *

**So how was that? Was it good, bad, Ugly? Let me know. I am really looking forward to your reviews of this chapter. I know the story is kind of slow moving but I only do that so you can understand all the thoughts running through her head. Please leave me a comment, review or question. I'm waiting... well... actually I'm going to a Superbowl Party so I won't be here, in front of my computer all night but I'll get back to you ASAP. Thanks Katie for you kind words and I hope you enjoyed this. Lacey**


	17. Distrations

**Ok I am so happy to say that I finished this chapter. Also, I'm proud to announce that it's over 11 pages long in Word! I was sick this week so you guys get a good chapter out of my bordem yesterday. Ok so the song no one knows is owned by Kelli Lynn. Yes she is in this story so try to find her. I don't own the Orbit company either so please don't come after me. I love Orbit gum so it has a camio apperance in my story. Yes, Katie I still have your e-mail somewhere and I will address what happened with the other tour groups eventually but it didn't fit again! =-( SORRY!**

* * *

LAST TIME

Tess nodded and handed her a sheet of paper.

"It's the schedule," she explained, "So you know when he's on stage."

Mitchie said thanks and goodbye. She gave her another hug and went to the van. Glad she did not have to hide her excitement from Abigail.

**NOW**

Mitchie looked out the window the fields of corn as they drew closer to the church. She was happy; well, almost happy for the first time since she had left the driveway of her little house in Hornsby Tennessee.

_It's weird, I haven't been here that long but I actually feel at home here. I feel like being here is right. I'm finally where I'm supposed to be. I may have written 'This Is Me' back in Hornsby, but now I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be. I already have friends. Caitlyn and Abby are really great. I don't even care if Rachel finds out my deep secret right now. Tess is there to cover my back if she does. Shane's lie is backed up well._

"Mitchie…Mitchie," Rachel said, pulling Mitchie from her thoughts.

"Huh? Sorry, my mind was somewhere else."

"I was asking you if you had guitar experience."

"Oh, yea I've been playing for about three years. Why?"

"I just thought you might be able to help out in classes at the beginning because we are starting with basic cords."

"I would love to."

The car stopped in front of a small church sporting a sign that said "Leona Evangelical Free Church." Mrs. Torres and Rachel got out of the front seat and Mitchie, and the rest of the students got out of the back and headed to the doors.

Upon reaching them, a man came to the door from the other side and opened it offering his hand.

"Good Morning, I'm Bradley Rancher."

Mrs. Torres took his hand. "Hi, I'm Connie and these kids are Mitchie, Abby, Barron, Sander, and Rachel. Well, I guess Rachel is not much of a kid anymore."

"Nice to meet you," Bradley answered, shaking everyone's hands as they were introduced, "We are so glad that you could make it to church this morning. My son, Thomas seems to be about your age," he commented looking at Abby.

"I hope to meet him then," Abby replied politely.

The group headed into the church where they spotted many teenagers hanging out by the entrance to a room.

"Can you believe that Rachel Anadeski isn't going to do any shows this year?" one of the girls was saying.

"Yea, I know. I heard that she's doing some type of school thing now. What is that about?" another one commented back.

Mitchie and Abby heard this exchange and laughed inwardly.

_What is going to happen when they realize Rachel can here everything they are saying?_

Rachel could hear them apparently or she did not know who to ask where the bathroom was because she went up to them and asked, "Where is the bathroom?"

The two girls turned around to face her and went into shock. They pointed to the right and said nothing staring at her in aw.

"Um…thanks," she said politely and walked away.

Only Abby had witnessed this exchange and was thrown into a fit of giggles.

"What?" Mitchie asked her friend.

"Rachel just completely freaked those girls out."

"You mean the ones that were talking about her? That is hilarious."

Mitchie began to giggle slightly too._ This day isn't turning out bad at all. Why was I so worried?_

_Everything is different, why do things change? I'm still standing here, but you've walked away. Everything is nothing now that I see, everything we are is everything we're gonna be._

"Oh, snap," Mitchie gasped looking down at her phone.

She had mistakenly forgotten to turn it off in her haste to leave the bathroom at the restaurant.

"Hello," she answered, a little embarrassed as Barren and Sander started laughing and her embarrassment.

_Mitchie, hey, I just wanted to make sure you are still ok with the plan because Tess and I have an interview with Pop-Informer tonight before the performance._

"Yea, Shane, it's ok. You know Tess and I are cool and I wouldn't want it to be anyone else. Well, I guess it couldn't really be anyone else and I wish it was me, a little, but you know and I both know that I can't do that right now…"

Mitchie looked around to make sure that Rachel wasn't back and saw the blonde coming from around the corner.

"I got to go, Rachel's coming. Call me after the interview. Oh, and Abby's ok with everything."

_What! Mitchie! She knows! And you-_

Mitchie had no choice but to hang up the phone as Rachel rejoined the group. This time making sure she had it in the off position.

Abby gave her a worried look. How long could they keep Shane a secret from Rachel?

Music began to play, giving a cue to everyone to go into the sanctuary.

Mitchie found it hard to concentrate during the sermon. What made things worse was that the pastor was speaking on lying. Saying how wrong lying was, how not telling the full truth was still lying, how keeping the truth from someone was indirectly lying to them. She could also see that it was making Abigail uncomfortable sitting between Mitchie and her sister.

_I can't tell Rachel, not right now. I know it's lying because it's not telling the truth but what am I supposed to do? Go up to her and say 'I just wanted to let you know that Shane broke up with you because of me." No. I can't say that. I'll talk to Shane about it and see what he says. Oh, my gosh. I told him to lie to the entire world. I told him to tell the world that he was dating Tess. Oh, man, I'm so bad. I can't believe I'm letting him do that. Now I understand why they were so hesitant. It wasn't because I would get wrapped up in the magazines; it was because they wanted an out for lying. I need to call Shane._

The pastor dismissed the sermon and left the podium. Mitchie shook her head. She had missed everything he had said. Not one thing had been soaked up into her brain that she could remember.

Abby nudged her and she got up and walked out of the sanctuary.

"Hi," a boy approached Mitchie, "I'm Thomas. I couldn't help but notice that I haven't seen you here before."

He stuck out his hand. Mitchie took it.

"Hi, I'm Mitchie; this is my roommate Abby and my classmates Barron and Sander. We just started a new school about a half an hour from here."

"Oh, is it the performing arts school?"

"Yea, you know about it?"

"A friend of mine was considering it."

"That's cool. What year are you Thomas?"

"I'm a sophomore."

Abby looked shocked. Thomas was about three inches taller than Sander, brown eyes and blonde hair. He looked a lot older than he was so it was no surprise to him to get that look from Abby.

"I know. I look a lot older, right? Is that why your friend is staring at me?" Thomas asked, feeling slightly self conscious at the blank stare on Abby's face.

Mitchie smiled and shrugged her shoulders.

"We met yesterday. I don't know her habits yet, but that's my guess."

Thomas smiled and turned to Barron.

"Are you guys going to Sunday school?"

"As long as we don't get homework," Barron joked.

"Cool, let me show you guys around."

Thomas led the way down a narrow hall pointing out different rooms and what they were. Mitchie took into account where the bathroom and the library were. She also noted how to get back to the main doors from the high schooler's classroom. They group also ran into the girls who had been discussing Rachel earlier. The girls ran up to Thomas and gave him a hug in greeting.

_Thomas must be a really popular person. Well, he is kinda good looking, I have to give him that. He seems nice enough._

Thomas gave high fives to a number of guys. They had been slightly behind the girls. While they were all there he introduced the group of people to the new comers.

"James, Ryan, Evan, Katie, Ana, Kelly, Lynn, Sarah, Adam, and Lea, these are some cool new peeps from that new boarding school Pastor Moe has been talking about. This is Mitchie, Abby, Barron and Sander," Thomas introduced.

"Sarah looks kind of mean," Abby whispered leaning over to Mitchie.

Mitchie looked over at the group of girls and guys who were looking the new comers over.

_Abby's right. Sarah does not look like some one you want to make enemies with but I took care of my Tess problem so Sarah won't be anything too hard to deal with. She doesn't look like she could take me but she definitely seems to have power over the other girls. Just another Tess._

Mitchie bit her lip.

"Tom, you'll never guess who we saw right before the service," Lea blurted out.

"Rachel Anadetski?" Abby guessed.

"How did you know?" Kelly asked.

"Oh, I'm Abigail Anadetski."

"No, you're not," Ana said, looking shocked.

"Yep, she is. Rachel is my guitar teacher at Camp Rock High," Mitchie answered.

"Dude, your sister is hot," Evan uttered.

Adam elbowed him in the gut, causing him to double over in pain.

"Well," James said interrupting the awkward silence that was developing, "Shall we go to class? Pastor Moe doesn't like it when we're late."

With that Thomas lead the group of high schoolers into the high schooler's classroom.

Mitchie looked around. It didn't look much like a class room. After all, the walls were lime green and there were booths and tables where there would normally have been wooden chairs. There was also a big screen television set up against the far wall. Next to the set was a tall skinny man sitting with a laptop.

_That must be Pastor Moe. Wow, he's taller than Shaquille O'Neal._

"Hello," the man said getting up, "Welcome to Firm Foundation. I'm Pastor Maurice but you can call me Pastor Moe. Please take a seat and take out your Bible. Turn to Matthew chapter six."

The rest of the class went in a blur. Mitchie tried to focus but it was hard in a new place without Sierra sitting next to her to force her mind to stay on task. In fact, if it had not have been for Abigail, Mitchie would have been just fine.

Abigail was uncomfortable. She was used to sitting with her parents during the Sunday school hour because there was no high school level class at her home church. She had also never had other friends who shared the same belief system as her and was finding it hard to resist the urge to pass notes to Mitchie.

Mitchie felt something fall into her lap. She opened the piece a paper and read it.

_Thomas is cute. You're so lucky he likes you._

Mitchie shook her head.

_No. He's just a nice guy. It's not like anything would happen if he did. As soon as things become normal to me, I'm Shane's._

She dropped the piece of paper back into Abby's lap and tried to focus on the lesson. She was almost done reading the passage that Pastor Moe had been talking about when another piece of paper landed there.

_Aw. That's sweet. Why are you waiting? You seem pretty into him now. Rachel is not going to find out anyway because of the Tess distraction. Or did I miss interpret that? She is your decoy right?_

Mitchie put the note into her Bible and finished reading. Pastor Moe was calling on people to answer questions and she did not want to seem dumb in front of all the new faces. She concentrated and realized that it was familiar verses from the week before camp.

_-Mitchie was sitting at the table next to Sierra. Pastor Rob was talking about worry. He was saying that it was something that you did not need to do. Mitchie was thinking about how she was going to plead with her mom about going to Camp Rock. _

_She knew the family could not afford it but she felt like it was the only place that she would be able to fit in. She had not mentioned this to Sierra because she knew that Sierra would not understand why money would be and issue._

_Sierra's parents had inherited a large sum of money from her dad's rich aunt that had passed away about a week after Sierra's birth. She had not known the aunt but her dad had said that she reminded him of his aunt._

_Mitchie had tried to push it out of her mind but found it hard.-_

Now it was the memory that was stopping her from concentrating. She pushed harder to find the meaning in the passage.

To her luck, Pastor Moe picked Sarah. It was obvious that Sarah was not paying attention. She had been whispering to Katie and had missed everything.

"Um…why don't you ask Lea, she knows everything," Sarah replied to the question.

It was not said in a mean way, more as a matter of fact. Sarah obviously thought that Lea was really smart and Sarah did not know what the question was at all because she had not been paying any attention.

"No," Pastor Moe answered," I asked you."

Sarah looked to Ana for help. When she found none, she looked at Evan, who was sitting to her left. He shrugged his shoulders to show that he had no clue of how to answer.

"Um…"Sarah said stalling.

"He is explaining that spiritual wealth is worth more than physical wealth here on earth," Abby cut in.

Sarah gave her a death glare but nodded her head and said that Abby was right.

"Ok, well we are out of time. Lynn, could you pray for us as we are on our way?"

Lynn nodded and everyone bowed their heads.

After the prayer Sarah got up and walked out of the room. Mitchie noticed that Katie and Kelly followed.

_I wonder what that's about. Oh well, what ever._

Mitchie picked up her stuff and walked towards Barron and Sander who were introducing themselves to the pastor.

"Oh and here come Mitchie and Abigail," Barron said, as the Mitchie approached.

She had not realized that Abigail had been following her but she did not mind.

"Nice to meet you I'm Pastor Moe, or PM," Pastor Moe said, extending his hand first to Mitchie then to Abigail.

"Hi, nice to meet you too," Mitchie relied.

"Yea, your lesson was great," Abigail added.

"What's up with Sarah? She doesn't seem very down to earth," Sander commented.

"I can help you there," a voice came from behind.

Sander turned to see Lea, Ana, and Lynn sitting at the booth. He was not sure who had spoken so he addressed them all.

"Ok."

Pastor Moe dismissed himself and left the room.

"She's the queen bee," Lea replied.

"Huh?" Mitchie asked, confused.

"Awhile ago, we were all close friends with her. She had a time where we would be close to her and then all of a sudden she would freeze one of us out," Ana explained a little more.

"Why did she do that?" Abigail asked.

"I was closer with Lea," Ana answered.

"I was friends with Lynn," Lea replied.

"And I don't like her controlling nature," Lynn finished.

Mitchie still looked confused.

"Are you talking about Sarah?" Adam said, coming up to the booth.

"Yea," Lea answered, "You notice that type of stuff?"

"It's kinda hard to miss, unless you're Evan."

"What do you mean?" Abigail inquired of him.

"Evan and Sarah are kind of together… or they are in like with each other but they are 'taking a break,'" Lea answered.

Lynn rolled her eyes. It was obvious that these girls were slightly sick of the drama around them.

"Anyway," Lea said, getting back to the pervious question, "She decided that we could still be friends with her after a couple of weeks of freezing us out, but we were pushed to the back of her 'posse'."

"Lea, just say it like it is. It's a clique and I'm done with it," Ana said, frustrated.

"Oh. I get it," Barron said, nodding.

"I don't. I'm still confused," Mitchie said.

"She is the leader of their group of friends. She kind of, dictates what they do. Or did if I caught that right," Sander explained.

"Yea, you did," Lynn answered.

"Oh," Mitchie voiced, "I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's not your fault. We already told her we were done being her pawns. In fact, the only reason Kelly and Katie haven't joined us yet is that they are scared of her power over Evan."

Adam laughed to himself. "Evan is jelly in her hands. Man, it's too bad he didn't get that scholarship. He'd be out of here."

"Scholarship?" Lea questioned.

"Didn't he tell you guys? He was trying for a scholarship to that Julliard type place that just opened."

"You mean Camp Rock High?" Abigail asked.

"Yea."

"That's where we're going. It wouldn't stop him from coming here if he wanted to," Barron supposed.

"Well, he told Sarah about the application and she talked him out of sending it in."

"I can't believe she did that. What happened to the Sarah we could trust?" Ana said shaking her head.

"You let her become queen," Lynn answered.

"Mitchie, Abigail, Barron, and Sander, we need to get going if we are going to stop by the Torres' for lunch," Rachel called, sticking her head in the door.

Everyone looked in that direction and the teens from the church were stunned. They had never been this close to a famous person in their lives.

* * *

"What! Mitchie! She knows! And you didn't say anything? Hel-hello?"

Shane threw his cell phone on the couch of the tour bus.

"What was that about?" Nate asked.

He had almost been hit by the flying cell phone.

"Mitchie told Abigail about knowing me or something."

"Abigail, as in Rachel's sister Abigail?"

"The one and only."

"Well, it's not like she told Rachel," Jason pointed out turning off the television set.

"I don't get it. She can tell everyone that we are going to be together including me but she doesn't want to be my girlfriend.

This whole Tess thing is ridiculous. We have to lie about a relationship and then I have to 'break up' with Tess because she and I can be together.

Don't get me wrong, I really want to be with her, it's just that… I don't know. I don't get girls as much as I let on to her" Shane confided

"Dude, none of us get girls. It's just part of being a guy," Nate tried to comfort him.

"I don't even understand half the stuff my mom says to me. I don't know what is going to happen when a girl likes me," Jason said with a blank stare at the floor.

Shane laughed a little to himself. Jason was certainly out there.

"I don't even know Abby. Rachel said that they used to be really close. When we were together, Rachel called Abby every night. It was kind of a ritual for after her shows.

Maybe she was more open with Abby than the other way around."

"We can only hope. What would happen if the press got a hold of Mitchie's name?" Nate brought up.

"Thanks Nate. Way to have a good attitude about this mess."

The bus stopped and the driver came onto the speaker.

"We are stopping for gas and the bathroom if you guys need anything."

Shane stood up and headed out the door. He didn't need to use the bathroom but he really wanted gum.

It was a weird habit to have, but when Shane was little his mom chewed gum when she was having a hard time with something.

She used to smoke, but when she found out she was expecting, she stopped smoking and switched to gum chewing as a healthier substitute.

Shane had picked up this habit and had chewed gum ever since he had been able to eat solid food.

"Ahhh!"

Shane was all of a sudden bombarded with a wall of screaming girls.

_I can't even get a pack of gum without girls messing it up. Gosh, why didn't I see this coming? Maybe because it didn't happen at Camp Rock._

Shane smiled and waved to the fans before pushing threw and into the minimart.

He quickly located the desk and grabbed a 3 pack of Orbit of a mint variety and put it on the counter. He pulled his wallet out of his pocket and paid for his gum. He was putting his credit card back in his wallet when a picture caught his eye. He had put it there about a year ago and had not thought to remove it.

The blonde in the picture was kissing his cheek while he smiled and held up the camera that had taken the picture.

_Rachel…why did she have to go and make my life difficult? Or was it really Mitchie who started all of this? Why am I trying to blame them at all? SHANE, TAKE RESPONCIBLITY FOR YOUR OWN ACTIONS! _I_ was the one who screwed up and got sent to Camp Rock. _I_ was the one who befriended Mitchie and fell in love with her. It's not her fault and it's not Rachel's either._

Shane thanked the person at the desk and left the minimart. Again, he was surrounded but managed to get back to the bus where he was greeted by none other than Tess.

"Hey," she said, giving him a hug.

"Hi," he responded, hugging her back and noting that she was most definitely acting.

Luckily, he was the only one who knew.

When they pulled apart he asked her to spend the afternoon in his tour bus instead of her mom's and she excepted.

This was noted by all the fan girls that were still gawking at the scene before them.

The two then entered the bus and closed the door.

Shane looked around.

_Nate and Jason must be talking to the driver or something. Maybe Tess can explain Mitchie to me. They are friends. I know they aren't close, but girls talk._

"Hey Tess?" Shane addressed her, taking a seat on the couch.

"What's up?" she asked taking a seat next to him and grabbing the guitar that had been lazily leaned against the couch.

No doubt it was Nate's.

"I was wondering if you could explain the mind of a specific teenage girl."

"I assume you mean Mitchie. What do you want to know?"

"Why is she playing with me?"

"What do you mean?"

* * *

**What did you think? Tess is pretty cool right? Yum, yum... now I want Orbit. Is Shane over reacting? Is Mitchie being a Sarah type person? Oh I do tend to pull things from experiance so I'm sorry if you got bored with that stuff about Sarah. Please Review! I love to hear from you. It makes my week so please send long reviews! ~Lacey~**

* * *


	18. What a Girl Wants

**Ok. First of all, Katie, I know I promised you an answer but yet again, it doesn't fit the plot. Sorry! Second, I'm glad you all liked the Shane part and it starts this chapter so you know what happened. Third, I know it's shorter than usual but I wanted to get it out before I had to go back to school for the week.**

* * *

LAST TIME

"I assume you mean Mitchie. What do you want to know?"

"Why is she playing with me?"

"What do you mean?"

**NOW**

"I guess it's just that I don't get why she can claim me but can't be my girl friend now," Shane said looking defeated, "What more does she want?"

Tess thought about Mitchie. She did not know much about her. They had been roommates for weeks, but Mitchie had been lying then and it was had to tell what the truth out of Mitchie's lie. Not to mention it had taken her at least two weeks just to see that Mitchie was lying and that was only because she caught Mitchie and Caitlyn talking to her Mrs. Torres. Of course, Tess would now admit she would have done the same thing if she had been in Mitchie's position, but she would have told Shane the truth.

Tess stood up.

"Shane, let me introduce you to the world of girls."

She began to pace as Shane focused on what she was about to say.

"First of all, girls most girls don't like to change more than one thing about their life at a time. Exhibit A: If Mitchie had stayed at her old school, she would probably be saying yes to you right now."

"Huh, what?"

Shane scratched his head in confusion.

"Hey, Shane… Oh, hey Tess, how's it going?" Nate walked in, closely followed by Jason who knocked off balance slightly.

"Hey Nate. What's up?"

"Oh, I was just coming to check and make sure Shane was ready for us to leave this pit stop but I guess you need to switch buses so I'll tell the driver to wait," Nate explained turning to leave.

"No, Nate. She's going to hang with us until we get to the venue tonight," Shane explained.

"Ok, cool," Nate said, climbing the last stair into the bus and taking a seat next to Shane.

"So what were you guys talking about?" Jason said, also climbing the stairs but making a v-line to the mini fridge and removing a Gatorade.

"I was just enlightening Shane in a girl's mind," Tess answered.

"Oh. Can we join this little conversation? I want to know too," Nate asked.

Tess looked at Shane. He nodded.

"I guess you guys can stay, but no making fun of me," Shane replied.

"Jason you want to stay too?" Tess asked.

"No thanks. I'm gonna work on some guitar solos Shane just wrote for me," Jason answered and walked towards the back of the bus.

"Ok, now, where was I?"

"You were trying to explain to me why girls don't like change or something like that."

"Oh yea. Ok so, we are using Mitchie as our example if you were wondering Nate."

Nate rolled his eyes. Leave it to Shane to make everything about Mitchie. Half of the songs he had written for their new CD were about her.

"I still don't get it," Shane said.

"Ok, let me lay this out for you," Tess said patiently, "Mitchie moved, switched schools, lost her best friend because of the move, is meeting a lot of new people because of the new school, hasn't even started classes yet and I know that Brown loaded her schedule so you know that she is not going to be used to that for a couple of weeks. Now add the pressure of a new boyfriend and you have in your hands a mess."

_Ok, so the move is a big deal, and the losing friends might be hard. I know it was when I moved away from North Carolina. I was home schooled so that I can't really relate to but it must be hard. My uncle probably detonated her schedule so she probably is a little upset about that and making new friends must be hard for her if she lied to me all summer. Ok. Fine. Tess is right. Wow never thought I would ever feel that way._

Shane slowly nodded.

"You get it Nate?"

"I missed your point but I think I get it. You're saying that girls crack under pressure right?"

Tess moved her head from side to side as if weighing her options.

"Essentially, yes. Can we move on?"

The two nodded.

"Ok," Tess began to pace again and the bus started moving causing her to fall onto the couch between the boys. The three of them started laughing as Tess got up and fixed her hair.

"Maybe I shouldn't pace."

The boys bobbed their heads in unison.

"Second of all, girls like it when you make them important to you but not when you point out their flaws. Exhibit B: Mitchie lied about who she was, and I know you were mad, but you went after her about her lie with a speech to the whole dance class about being yourself."

"I'm so stupid," Shane said, putting his head in his hands.

"Haha, you would feel even more stupid if you knew the other stuff that you did," Nate commented.

"What are you talking about?" Shane asked, looking up.

"We can talk about this later," Tess tried to break it up, feeling the tension in the room growing.

"No, I want to know what I did. I don't want to hurt her. I didn't know I did that day and now I feel horrible."

"Shane, it's ok. I know for a fact that she's over it," Tess answered, not quite sure how true that was, "but if you really want to know, Nate, you can tell him but be quick about it."

Nate got an evil grin on his face but quickly hid it knowing how much trouble he would be in after he spoke his mind.

"Dude, you know how you broke up with Rachel the day of final jam?"

"Yea."

"Well, I heard the whole conversation because I was sitting in the tree trying to get a look at a girl when you two showed up at the docks.

You were kind of louder than you thought. Something you said may have sat funny with Mitchie."

"What, what did I say?"

"You said you were 'just with a camper.' It almost seemed like she was just another camper who wanted to say goodbye to their counselor.

I know it's not true, Tess knows it's not true and probably more than half the camp knows, but Mitchie might be having second thoughts about it."

"Wow," Tess said with a look of shock, "Tha-that was very insightful Nate."

Nate shrugged.

"I have a gift. I can read people and the fact that I could see Mitchie's face as you said it helped a lot," Nate answered.

"Shane, I have to say, there was one other time," Tess mumbled.

"What? There's more?"

Tess gave him a sorry smile.

"It's small but it might be why communication has been bad this past week. Am I right in assuming that you didn't even get her number on the last day of camp?"

"Yea, you would be right about the last thing. She seemed to mad and I didn't want to push her so I said goodbye after she said she forgave me."

"Do you really know why you were saying sorry?"

"Not, completely."

"I was up packing because my mom wanted to leave early. You were passing my cabin when she was and you bumped into her. You told her to watch where she was going. I'm sorry to say, your tone was very mean."

"Wait, are you talking about the last day of camp after the thing Nate was talking about?" Shane interrupted, "because I can justify my behavior. Rachel was trying to convince me not to break up with her."

"I understand why that would make you upset but you have to see that you hurt her. She said sorry and you basically brushed her off until you looked at her. She probably saw that as just plain rude. Then you said you were sorry but the damage had been done and there was no way to take it back."

_Wow, I'm a jerk. No wonder I get called a jerky pop star so often. I can't believe I did that._

"Ok. Now what do I do to make it better?"

"First of all, it can get better on its own. Mitchie and I talked and she has forgiven you," Nate answered, "but don't expect this to work all the time. If it doesn't you have to show her how truly sorry you are."

"Don't promise her that it will never happen again either. You will screw up again and you don't want her to say that you promised her when it was an impossible promise to keep," Tess interjected.

"Ok. So how can I show her I care without being her boyfriend now? I can't send her flowers or kiss her or tell her I care about her."

"No, you can't. That would show that you aren't respecting her need to take things slow with all the change in her life. Just be there for her. She needs friends right now."

Shane nodded his head.

_I can do that…I hope…_

* * *

Abigail led the group out the door and followed Rachel back to the front door where they saw Mr. and Mrs. Torres waiting.

"There you are. I was wondering where you had all disappeared to," Mrs. Torres commented as the group came into view.

"Daddy!" Mitchie said, running over to embrace her father.

"I pumpkin. How are you?"

"Just great," Mitchie answered earnestly.

"Are you all ready to go?" Mrs. Torres addressed the group, pulling out her van keys.

"Yep," Barron answered.

"Ok, well meet you at home honey."

Mrs. Torres hugged Mr. Torres and led the teens back out to her van.

The originally sunny day had turned gloomy and seemed to be threatening to rain. Secretly Mitchie was hoping it would so that she would have a reason to stay inside when she got back to camp.

She did not like it when people over heard her write a song because she thought they would prematurely judge it. She had been finishing "This Is Me" when she had arrived at camp and had only sung the song from start to finish for Caitlyn when they had been preparing for Final Jam.

With all that she was going though, she had plenty of inspiration for songs but had not had time to write them or put music to them.

As the van pulled out of the parking lot, Mitchie's mind wandered.

_How do you write a song about a boy without putting his name in it? Shane's name doesn't rhyme well with anything anyway. Maybe Rachel could help me with that. Rachel is the reason I can't put his name in the song though. Maybe my lyrics teacher can help me…What was their name again? _

_I have Ms. Catsing for dance, Ms. Spray for musical production, Mr. Brookram for English, Ms. Swiff for lyrics, that's the person I need to talk to. What do I have after lyrics? Mr. Dominguez for Spanish? No that was after lunch…Berry? Was he or she at the teacher thing last night? Oh well, I'll find out tomorrow I guess. Then after Physics I have voice with Brown…but…Brown isn't teaching lessons. I guess I'll have to talk to mom later. After all, she is my counselor._

With all the thoughts swirling in her head, she had not realized that they were now pulling up at the house.

Connie parked the car and everyone filed out.

* * *

**So? How'd I do? Please leave a comment or two. Thanks so much for reading! I feel like I'm giving you my birthday gift because having time to write is such a pleasure to me and my birthday is this week! I can't wait! Anywho, thanks for reading and um... leave a message after the beep...**

**beeeeeeep**


	19. Caught

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Ok, so I owe you two chapters but here is one. I hope you like it. The songs are by the Jonas Brothers. The first one was not released to the public because it was Joe's way to vent about his break up with AJ, but the other one is on the American Best Buy version of A Little Bit Longer. They are both on .com if you are looking for them. Thanks for all the comments! I love you guys.

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**LAST TIME**

With all the thoughts swirling in her head, she had not realized that they were now pulling up at the house.

Connie parked the car and everyone filed out.

* * *

**NOW**

Mitchie was the first one through the door and she headed strait for her room. She wanted to explain everything that was going on to someone, anyone who was not informed of what was going on. Her first instinct was to call Sierra, but then she realized Sierra had a meeting after church and would not answer her call.

_Nate. He would be interested to know and Shane would probably be ready to yell at me when I called because I hung up on him._

Mitchie quickly dialed Nate's number.

_Hello?_

"Hey Nate, its Mitchie."

_Hang on._

Mitchie heard what sounded like a door shut.

_What's up?_

"I just wanted someone to talk to and it's really hard to find that with Rachel around."

_I know what you mean. When she was with Shane, we couldn't talk about anything but the weather without her looking over our shoulders. Don't get me wrong, she's a great girl and a good friend but a horrible girlfriend or best friend's girlfriend because of how nosey she is._

"Abigail seems kinda like that too. Tess was in the same restaurant that we stopped at for breakfast. She passed me a note through the waitress and Abigail saw everything. Nate, she knows."

_Relax. I know Shane kinda blew up when you told him, but she and her sister aren't as close as they seem. Sure, they talk a lot, but they don't see eye to eye on a lot. Rachel and Shane were together for his image and publicity for her new album. She wanted something out of it that Shane didn't. Abigail came to one of the shows and Rachel completely brushed her off to try and get Shane's attention. Abigail is a great person. We talked that whole night and she seemed really nice and down to earth despite who here sister is._

"I'm glad to hear that. Does Shane know that? He pretty much screamed at me when I hung up earlier."

_Don't worry about Shane. Tess and I will keep him in check. In fact, you know that 'how to talk to girls 101' thing you and Caitlyn gave me? Well, Shane got a 'how to treat a girl' crash course about 5 minutes ago._

Mitchie laughed at this.

The sound of a door opening and closing came again along with _'Romeo take me somewhere, we can be alone. I'll be waiting; all there's left to do is run. You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess, It's a love story, baby, just say yes.'_

_Hang on, Shane just walked in. I'm gonna go see what Tess is up to._

"Tess is with you still?"

_Yea._

"_I'm not gonna tell you who she is! Rachel, how many times do I have to say we're over before you accept it? No…If I told you, you wouldn't believe me anyway… it'll be out in the tabloids soon enough. You can find out with the rest of the world."_

Shane sounded angry as Mitchie heard something hit a wall.

"Is Shane ok?"

_Yea, Rachel just called that's all._

"So I over heard. Don't tell him it's me if he asks. He'll be upset I called you not him."

_I think he would be fine with it but if that's what you want, fine._

Mitchie heard the door close again.

_Do you want to talk to Tess?_

Mitchie heard some one knocking on her door frame. She turned around to see Rachel standing there.

"Actually, I-I got to go. I'll call you later," Mitchie said nervously.

_Rachel just walked in, didn't she?_

"Yep. Tess, I'll call you tonight. I have to go down for lunch."

_Ok Mitchie. I'll talk to you later. Bye._

Mitchie hung up the phone without saying goodbye to Nate and threw it on the bed.

It was awkward to have Rachel in her room. With the walls covered in posters of Connect three and Rachel Anadeski. Her idol was in her room, and she wasn't happy about it.

If Rachel had walked in to her room last summer, Mitchie would have been extremely happy, but now, it was just awkward.

_I wonder how much of that she heard before she knocked. Uh oh, awkward silence._

Mitchie smiled to hide her nerves.

"What's up?" she asked.

"Your dad said that you had a music room. I just wanted to check it out but I wanted to make sure it was ok with you."

"Oh, yea. I'll show you around."

Mitchie lead the way out of the room, slightly relaxed that she had not been interrogated yet.

_Maybe Rachel deserves more credit than I am giving her._

Mitchie walked into the, now blue room where band posters had been hung on the wall and her keyboard had been set up.

"Wow, this is really nice," Rachel commented.

"It's not much. Most of my music stuff is at camp right now, but I think I'm going to try to convince my dad to turn it into a recording studio or something."

"That's really cool. Let me know if and when that happens, maybe we could collaborate on a song or something."

_Never. Unless I figure out a way to do it without hurting Shane or Rachel._

"Yea, that would be cool."

"Mitchie, Rachel. Where are you?"

"In here Abby," Rachel called, going back to the door and sticking her head out into the hallway.

Abby came down the hall and entered the room.

"Wow, Mitchie, nice set up."

"Thanks," Mitchie responded.

"So, I don't mean to pry, but you're close friends with Tess Tyler?" Rachel asked, prying.

"Well, I wouldn't exactly call us close friends. We just got to know each other really well this summer. After a huge drama problem, we became good friends."

"That's cool," Abigail responded, knowing what the notes were about fully now.

"So, what guy were you two talking about?"

"Wha-what do you mean?" Mitchie asked nervously trying to brush it off.

"Well, what else do sixteen year olds talk about?"

Mitchie internally let out a sigh of relief and she could see that Abigail had done the same.

"I guess you're right."

"So, who is he?" Rachel pried.

Abigail faked a clumsy moment and knocked into the keyboard which fell to the floor.

"Oh, Mitchie, I'm sorry."

"It's ok," Mitchie answered, going to aid her in picking up the keyboard and putting it back on the stand.

"Girls! Lunch!" Mrs. Torres shouted from downstairs.

The girls left the room and the discussion behind and walked down stairs. The boys were out on the patio sitting at the deck table talking about who knows what when the girls came out to sit with them. Mr. Torres had been busy making burgers, but these were not just any burgers. They were the Famous Torres Burgers.

The group prayed and then started in on what looked like a fantastic meal. It was until the guys started to get full. That is when the conversation started to get interesting.

"So, Mitchie, what's the deal with Tess? She came over to see if you were with us at breakfast and last we heard you hated each other because of the whole lie thing."

"Thanks, Sandler, I had almost forgotten about how bad that part of my summer was."

"It's not his fault. We were both curious," Barron came in as defense.

"Well, she apologized. She knew what she did was wrong. I mean she was sorry about the whole telling all of camp thing. Then I apologized for lying to her."

"Was this before, or after your canoe ride with Shane?" Sandler asked.

Rachel stiffened and looked directly at Mitchie.

"Um… what canoe ride?"

"The canoe ride after final jam when you…ow" Sandler stopped short when Barron slapped him in the chest.

Mitchie looked down at her plate and ate the rest of her meal in silence. She could feel the eyes boring into her head from Rachel's direction.

_I need to talk to Caitlyn or Sierra and now! What am I going to do? I've lied to Rachel already. This can't be good. At least Abby backs me up…Right?_

Mitchie excused herself and took her plate into the kitchen. She put it down in the sink and ran to her room. She heard foot steps behind her and braced herself for what was about to come. She reached her room before the steps reached her and grabbed her phone off her bed.

_Shane is going to kill me! Who is the best liar I know? Who can help me out of this? What do I say when Rachel asks me about this?_

There was a knock on the door frame.

_That can't be Rachel. Why would she knock if she wanted to give me a piece of her mind?_

Mitchie turned around to see Abigail standing there. She looked a bit confused but she seemed level headed and unruffled.

"Mitchie, I am going to help you out of this mess. Rachel can't know about this… she needs to… to think that it was a joke meant to sound like more happened than did."

"Thanks, Abby. You know, Nate was right about you."

"You talked to Nate? About me?"

"Yea. I was actually on the phone with him when your sister came up. He was hanging out with Tess and Shane at the time so I immediately told Rachel that I was talking to Tess."

"Well, you are a good liar then, she fell for it."

"There is no way I can get myself out of this one though. I was hanging out with Shane that night. I actually heard him break up with Rachel. He doesn't know I did, but I did and Rachel can never know."

"You mean he was two timing my sister and you still like him," Abigail said, with a look of disgust on her face.

"No, no, no," Mitchie countered, "He and I met over the summer and we became friends. There was nothing in it more than a couple of songs by the beach and the dance classes he taught that I was in."

Abigail calmed down. She seemed to understand, but only just.

"So, you and he didn't kiss or anything."

"It was strictly a hands-off relationship. We didn't even high five each other that I can remember.

"He knew he had your sister, but he knew that that wasn't going to last much longer because he fell for the girl with the voice."

"Girl with the voice?"

"Yea, I was in a practice cabin the first day of camp after I had helped set up for dinner and I guess he heard me singing. I didn't know he was looking for me and he didn't know it was me."

"That's actually kinda romantic, but it's still wrong. He had my sister and she didn't look for other guys while he was at camp."

"Abby, it's different. Rachel has a female fan base. She is not being chased by a group of guys all the time. Shane had a female fan base too and he tried not to be a pig, but all guys are pigs. It was kind of hard not to give in to it. Besides, he couldn't avoid my voice or the other girls here. They followed him around and apparently my voice haunted him."

"Then why didn't he break up with her sooner?"

"He probably wanted to be sure that he really wanted to do that. When he came to camp, he was pretty mad at the world. You saw him when he was around fans. He was better with fans than campers, believe me. When he started to change, he wasn't as cold hearted and he probably was worried about hurting Rachel's feelings. He is a really sensitive guy when you get to know him."

"Ha, Shane Gray, sensitive? Yea, right."

"You don't have to believe me. Just help me with my problem please."

Mitchie gave Abigail a puppy dog pout that she had used on her parents multiple times.

"Ok, ok I'll help you, but only because you seem like a nice girl and I don't want to see you crushed by my sister."

Mitchie smiled.

"So what's the plan?" Mitchie asked Abigail.

* * *

"I'm not gonna tell you who she is! Rachel, how many times do I have to say we're over before you accept it? No…If I told you, you wouldn't believe me anyway… it'll be out in the tabloids soon enough. You can find out with the rest of the world."

Shane threw his phone across the room. It hit the wall with a loud bang.

_Why won't she get it through her thick head, I don't like her. I have never wanted that type of relationship with her. Now I don't even want to be near her. Gosh, darn it! Where is Mitchie when I need her? She understands everything… I don't know how, but she does._

Shane took notice that Nate had left the room and followed. He only heard the end of the conversation. He saw Tess reach out for the phone and the conversation end with:

"Rachel just walked in, didn't she?

"Ok Mitchie. I'll talk to you later. Bye."

"Mitchie called you?" Shane asked.

"No, that wasn't Mitchie."

"Nate, don't lie. I heard the end of the conversation. What did she want?" Shane asked rubbing his head trying to get Rachel out of it.

"She is just freaking out about Rachel. Nothing to worry about, but you might want to call and apologize for yelling at her. She was pretty upset when I got the call."

"I'll call her later; right now I need to write."

Shane grabbed his guitar and went back into the room where he had been on the phone.

Shane was really upset. Rachel just was not getting that they were over. Shane never talked to his ex-girlfriends. It was just not something he did. When it was over, it was over. He started to hear lyrics come to mind _"Cause you love me, and I hate you. I'm right, your wrong. Move one"_

The words came more rapidly and within an hour he had written a whole song devoted to Rachel.

It went like this:

_Wouldn't it be nice if I had some tissues  
Wipe away the tears that's right you got issues  
Why do you keep asking questions when I don't care  
And how many times will it take you to figure out  
How much I hate you  
I'm right, your wrong, move on_

Cause you love me  
And I hate you  
I'm right  
Your wrong  
Move on

Wouldn't it be nice if you stopped whining  
And telling all your friends that I've been lying  
You can trust me when I tell you we're through (we're through)  
And how many times will it take you  
Do the math me minus you  
I'm right, your wrong, move on

Cause you love me  
And I hate you  
I'm right  
Your wrong  
Move on

How many feelings will you harbor  
Get over it your friends are so much hotter (oh yeah)  
I'm right, your wrong, move on  
I'm right, your wrong, move on

Cause you love me  
And I hate you  
I'm right  
Your wrong  
Move on  
Cause you love me  
And I hate you  
I'm right  
Your wrong  
Move on

Shane's head was buzzing with lyrics. He knew that there was no way he was going to get Mitchie out of his head. She was his whole world. She inspired him to right another song and he knew that it would be a hit.

It went like this:

_It was cloudy on that night  
There were no stars in sight  
Then the planets all aligned  
When I saw her eyes_

One look that's all it took  
To send me, to another galaxy  
And she said

She was on her way to Mars  
Then she ran into a star  
And she fell into my arms  
Thank you gravity

Never let her go  
I'll hide her UFO  
She'll never have to know

She's my space girl  
And she's out of this world

We were watching Star Wars  
She looked kinda bored  
Said she'd seen it all before  
Made me wonder even more

Which universe was hers  
What galaxy did she call home  
Yeah

She was on her way to Mars  
When she went into a star  
And she fell into my arms  
Thank you gravity

Never let her go  
I'll hide her UFO  
She'll never have to know

She's my space girl  
And she's out of this world

Shane felt a lot better after he had finished writing.

_I should probably call Mitchie. Tess is rule are hard but the must be worth it. Tess wouldn't lie if Nate could back up the information. Why did I have to fall for Mitchie so late in the summer? Couldn't I have found out that she was the girl with the voice earlier? I wouldn't have had to deal with Rachel alone and she would have me too._

Shane dialed the number and listened to the phone ring. He heard it pick up.

_Hey this is Mitchie-_

"Hey Mitchie, I just wanted to say I'm sorry about the whole yelling at you thing. I over reacted-"

_I'm not here right now; leave a message after the beep…_

Shane groaned into the phone as it beeped.

"Hey Mitchie, it's Shane. I just wanted to say I'm sorry about the whole yelling at you thing. I over reacted.

"Abigail seems…ok. She's nicer than her sister about this whole break up thing. I'll give her that.

"Just be careful who you hang out with. I-I care about you. I don't want to see her hurt you. I'm really, really sorry. I-I should be a better…friend.

"I know you called Nate. I really wish you would have called me, but I understand. You thought that I was mad at you, and I was, but I'm not anymore and I'm really, really sorry.

"Call me back. I have a song I want you to hear. Bye."

* * *

**So? How was that? Cheesy? Average? Did I trick you at all? I really appreciate long comments with questions, comments, or concerns. Please! Ok I'm better than begging but it's good to hear from you. Katie, I let you down again… I'm really, really sorry. I will get your answer to you in a future chapter. Do you remeber your question even? Hopefully the next one. It was planned for this one but my mind took it in another direction. Sorry. Let me know what ya'll think. ~Lacey~**


	20. Worry

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Ok! Katie your answer is half here so see if you remeber the question now. The song that Mitchie is writing in this chapter is by Kelli Lynn. DO NOT STEAL. Anyone who steals from my bestie is no fan of mine. Enjoy!

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LAST TIME

"Hey Mitchie, it's Shane. I just wanted to say I'm sorry about the whole yelling at you thing. I over reacted.

"Abigail seems…ok. She's nicer than her sister about this whole break up thing. I'll give her that.

"Just be careful who you hang out with. I-I care about you. I don't want to see her hurt you. I'm really, really sorry. I-I should be a better…friend.

"I know you called Nate. I really wish you would have called me, but I understand. You thought that I was mad at you, and I was, but I'm not anymore and I'm really, really sorry.

"Call me back. I have a song I want you to hear. Bye."

* * *

**NOW**

Mitchie was and Abigail was lying down on their beds when Caitlyn came into the cabin.

_I can't believe it's only been one day with Rachel and I'm already lying to the camp again. At least it's only one teacher. She's not about to tell everyone that Shane needed help with his Spanish. I still can't believe she fell for that. Just because my last name is Torres doesn't mean I am fluent in Spanish._

"Hey guys, how was your day?" Caitlyn asked, sounding happy to finally have company.

"Long."

"Confusing."

Mitchie and Abigail both answered at once.

Mitchie sat up and grabbed her guitar. She also pulled out her yellow notebook.

_I'm gonna need a bigger notebook if life stays the way it is. I miss Sierra… Maybe I should call her and let her know what's up._

Mitchie began to strum the guitar. Lyrics started to come to her, but she was not sure if they were the right lyrics for the time.

'_Your laugh stays,_

_With me for days on end, _

_Signed sealed delivered, whatever,_

_You wanna call this love,_

_It's alright, _

_Cause whatever comes out of your mouth is the sweetest I've ever heard in my whole life.'_

_Do I really love him? Is this just an infatuation or am I jumping at a chance because a boy says he thinks I'm beautiful?_

More words came to her. The verse was coming fast, but the chores would be hard to figure out.

'_I don't know why, I'm writing you this song,_

_Maybe I just want the company, _

_Of something not my own._

_I travelled for miles and miles, _

_Trying to make you see, _

_That you everything that you wanna be, is possible.'_

_Why hasn't Shane called yet? Is he _that _mad at me? I want to talk to him. When I'm with him or when I talk to him, it makes it seem like my world is all better. Why didn't I say yes to him when I had the chance?_

Mitchie's conscience answered that question.

_You don't have time for a boyfriend and school is going to be hard enough as it is with everything you have taken on._

"Hey, Mitchie, you want to go get a soda? Alicia is supposed to be back in about one and her cousins are dropping her at the mess hall. I kinda wanted to talk to you about something too," Caitlyn asked.

Mitchie wrote the lyrics down and put her guitar and song book away.

"Yea sure. Abby, we'll be back in a little bit."

"Ok. I'm gonna take advantage of the quiet time and take a nap. Wake me before dinner?"

"Sure," the girls replied in unison.

Mitchie opened the door and they headed towards the mess hall.

"So, Caitlyn, what's up?"

"You know how I said I liked Nate?"

"Yea," Mitchie said turning to look at Caitlyn.

"Well, I think Alicia likes him too."

"How do you know?"

"Alicia was in my tour group and she stuck with me in the front when we went from place to place. We got talking about how we both knew Nate.

"She told me that she grew up seeing him as the older brother of her best friend, and that he seemed to see her the same way. Then she started talking about them getting older and it almost sounded like they were flirting."

"What do you mean?"

"She had a nickname for him and they would talk without Nate's sister around and how even though he had said that she was over when he mentioned Camp Rock High, she was really over because she wanted to see him before he went on tour. Like they had become close friends and it was almost…I don't know… a relationship," Caitlyn seemed worried.

"Caitlyn, I wouldn't worry about that right now. Nate may think you are crazy and annoying because of that whole spray bottle thing, but he wouldn't fall for his sister's best friend. Sierra would kill her brother if he liked me. It's like committing a crime to go out with your sister or brother's best friend. Don't worry about it."

"Thanks Mitchie. I feel a little better."

"No problem. So, other than Alicia, how did your tour go last night?"

"It went relatively well until a guy tried to seek into our cabin. I don't think he would have actually gone in, but I figured it was better to stop him than let him inside."

"Good call."

"How about you?"

"It went well; I met Abigail and Rachel Anadeski. Abigail seems nice. My mom brought her and Rachel to church this morning. Oh, don't worry about talking about me talking to Shane around her. She knows almost everything. The Anadeski's are really nosey people according to Nate."

"You talked to Nate today?"

"Yea, I needed someone to talk to and I figured that you were somewhere with Lola and Ella, so I called Nate instead. Shane was kinda mad at me for letting Abby find out, so I didn't call him and Sierra was at church until about ten minutes ago so I couldn't call her either."

"I see… So, does Rachel know?"

"No. She almost found out because Sandler can't keep his mouth shut, but Abby gave me a lie to cover it up with."

"Lying again, Torres? Haven't you learned your lesson from this summer?"

"I know you're right, but just think about what she would do to me as my teacher if she found out… She can't find out until she is over Shane."

"Ok, so maybe you're right about that, but do you remember how much that lie cost you in the end? You almost lost Shane altogether."

"I'm going to tell Shane though. I'm not leaving him in the dark. I care about him… I don't want to hurt him again."

"Ok. So, what did you tell her?"

"I told her that he needed Spanish help. He is a pop-star so it makes sense that he would want to be fluent in Spanish, but I don't speak fluent Spanish and my last name is Torres."

Caitlyn laughed as the girls reached the mess hall.

A smart car pulled up and Alicia got out, waved to the driver and came over to Caitlyn and Mitchie.

"Hey, guys. What's up?"

"Not much. How was your morning with your cousins?" Mitchie answered.

"It was pretty good. It was kinda weird to go to church without Sarah though."

"Yea, I was having the same problem because Sierra, my best friend from home, wasn't there. Abigail kept me company though."

"Oh, so you've met our roommate then."

"Yea, she's nice, but keep the fact that you know Nate to yourself."

"Ok," Alicia answered, understanding why this would be a problem.

* * *

**So? What did you think? Please give many reviews! ~Lacey~**


	21. Relaxation

**OK I don't have much to say but I do want you to know that there are two Katies. It was not done on perpose but there is a Katie at the church and a Katie at camp. They are not the same person. Kelli Lynn says thank you for the reviews on her songs and has sent me some more that may make it in to the story in the future. Enjoy!**

* * *

LAST TIME

"Oh, so you've met our roommate then."

"Yea, she's nice, but keep the fact that you know Nate to yourself."

"Ok," Alicia answered, understanding why this would be a problem.

* * *

**NOW**

Mitchie and the girls went back to the cabin. She pulled out her phone and noticed that she had missed a call.

_That's funny, I had my phone with me and it didn't ring._

She looked at the missed call. _Shane. Is he still mad at me because I don't want to hear the message if he is._

"Hey Caitlyn, can you check my messages for me? It's from Shane but I don't want to talk to him if he's still mad at me."

"You know what, how about we avoid the whole issue and go for a swim? After today, we'll be so busy with school that the nice summer weather will be gone before we have another break sort of opportunity.

"It's not like Shane is waiting around for you to call him back. He has a gig tonight right? He really should be focusing on that. Isn't that the reason you didn't say yes to him? Didn't you want him to focus on his thing and you to focus on yours?"

Mitchie sighed and nodded.

Caitlyn got up and grabbed her swimming suit before going to the bathroom to change. Abigail and Alicia got up too. They pulled out their suits and waited for the bathroom. Mitchie really was not in the mood for swimming, but Caitlyn had a point. It would take her mind off of Shane and it would probably be her last opportunity in Lake Rock before the weather became colder.

* * *

_Bounce, bounce, bounce._

_What is taking her so long? I said I was sorry about yelling at her. I practically told her that I love her, and still, nothing. What is taking her so long!_

Shane lay on his bunk, throwing a tennis ball at Nate's bunk, above and thinking. It had already been about two hours since he had called Mitchie and left his message.

Shane through the ball with more force with his last thought. Nate's head appeared upside down next to the bunk.

"Dude, could you stop! I know you're waiting for a call, but do you really have to take it out on my butt? I'm trying to get some work done before the show!"

"Sorry, man. It's just, it never took Rachel this long to get back to me when I left her a message. Mitchie always gets back to you quickly too. Is it just me or is she avoiding me?

"Want to prove to her I'm a decent guy, but when I freak out, she doesn't answer my calls."

"I don't know man, but I think it's just you. She's probably down by the beach with Caitlyn or something. She's not your girlfriend yet, so don't worry that she isn't as responsive as Rachel.

"Maybe Rachel is around so she couldn't answer the phone or check her messages. She was at her parents when she called me earlier. She had to get off because Rachel walked in."

Shane sighed. He knew Nate was probably right.

_Nate's right, but it's weird not to get a call back from a girl. I can't believe I'm following Mitchie's rules anyway. Since when does The Shane Gray follow a girl's rules? Since Mitchie came into my life apparently._

_All the girls I have dated were insecure with me. They would call me every few hours or do what they thought would keep me around. I never would have broken up with them if they weren't secure about my relationship with them and my constant traveling._

_Does that mean Mitchie trusts me? I hope that's what that means._

Shane when back to throwing the ball, lighter this time. Nate shook his head.

"If you want something to do, try helping me," Nate said, obviously trying to stop the constant rhythm under his butt.

"With what?" Shane asked, continuing to bounce the ball.

"The school on the road program started last week and I have a test in my Spanish curriculum tomorrow. You can quiz me."

"Since when do you follow the curriculum? You never did before."

"Since my mom said that I have to give up my life with you guys in concert and on the road if I don't bring my grades up."

"Ok, give me the book."

Nate dropped the book to the floor. Shane sat up and took it from the ground. He turned the pages until he found a list of words in English and Spanish.

"Ok, what's band?"

"Do you really expect me to have that as a vocab word?"

"It's what the book says, dude."

"Maybe I should look at that page again."

Shane handed the book back to Nate. Nate scanned the page and dropped it back to the ground, this time open making it easy for Shane to go back to what he had been trying to read.

"Ok, what's rhythm?"

"Umm… is it compás? Or is it ritmo?"

Shane scanned the page again.

"It's both. What's step?"

"Like dance steps?"

"I guess, it doesn't say if that is what it means."

"Ok, is it paso?"

"Yea. Wow Nate. You really know these words for looking at it once."

"It's what happens when you are a genius like me," Nate commented back.

"No, it's what happens when you have a photographic memory. Don't deny it. I know you do."

"How?"

"You can look at music once and then know every note and every vocal part on the page."

"I guess I'm caught."

"Hey, what are you guys working on?" Tess asked leaving the main room where she and Jason had been watching National Geographic.

"Spanish," Shane said, holding up the book.

"I thought you graduated."

"He did, I didn't," Nate said sitting up on his bed and letting his feet dangle dangerously close to Shane's face.

"Can I help? My mom made me learn Spanish while I was five. My nanny didn't speak a lick of English and rather than firing her, my mom hired a Spanish tutor for me."

"That's really cool, Tess," Nate commented.

* * *

_Splash, splash._

"Ahh! No fair Caitlyn, I wasn't even paying attention," Mitchie giggled as she kicked her legs at Caitlyn.

Mitchie had not gotten in. She really was not in the mood to swim, but was still up for the company of her best friend and roommates.

"Come on girls. Let's get her!"

Caitlyn, Alicia and Abigail all moved at once and pulled Mitchie into the lake.

"Ahh!" Mitchie continued to scream, as she was dragged away from the peer.

"You were asking for it," Alicia commented, "You kicked the water at all of us and Caitlyn was the only one who splashed you. Do you know how long it took me to curl my hair, just to have you soak it with two splashes?"

"If you didn't want your hair wet, then why did you get in?" Abigail replied in a question.

"You know, Abby, you bring up a good point," Mitchie said, now floating in the water on her own, "but, you're hair isn't wet either."

Mitchie made a dash for Abigail and hit her with a full on splash.

"Mitchie!" a voice called from the shore.

Mitchie turned around to see her mom standing there with her towel and flip-flops in her hand. She swam back to shore and took the towel as she got out of the water.

"I thought you said you were going to help me in the kitchen."

"I was. What time is it?"

"Four. You know that we start cooking at 3:30. I almost sent Barron out to find you when he passed by the kitchen."

"Sorry mom. I must have lost track of time. Caitlyn suggested the swim and I didn't even bring my phone because I didn't want it to get wet.

"My bad."

"Ok, well, your bad, yes. Now go get changed and meet me in the kitchen ASAP. We're making stir-fry tonight and I need you to chop vegetables."

"Ok, mom."

Mitchie waved goodbye to her cabin mates and headed back to her cabin to change.

There it sat. Her phone was still in the middle of her bed.

Mitchie shook her head.

_I don't have time to think about if Shane left a message or if he's still mad at me. I need to focus on school and working with mom right now. Then I can focus on Shane. No Shane this week, that's my resolution._

_Well, no talking to Shane on school days if I have other things to do. Yea, that sounds more reasonable._

Mitchie changed quickly, grabbed her cell phone and left the cabin.

She was proud of her resolution. She thought it would be a good way to keep focus and use her calls to Shane, Nate, Tess and Sierra as a reward for her focus and devotion to school. She arrived at the kitchen and began to work.

When she was done, she left and found a seat with her Ella and Lola at a table near the front of the room. Caitlyn, Abigail and Alicia joined her.

"So, Lola, Ella, how is your cabin?"

"So far so good," Lola answered.

"Yea, Katie is a little weird though. The way she decorated, you would think she enrolled at the wrong school. The posters are not like the ones we had this summer."

Lola nodded in agreement.

"What do you mean?" Caitlyn asked.

"Well, one of them is wrestlers. Others are just happy bunny and bands and stuff but it's just kinda odd," Ella said.

"Hmm… well that's different," Mitchie commented.

"Hey, Lola, do you think I could join you? I just got back and you seem like the only friendly face around here."

A girl with super curly hair and glasses had approached the table.

"Yea, sure," Lola answered, "Guys, this is Katie. Katie this is Mitchie, Caitlyn, Abigail, Alicia, and you already know Ella."

"Hi," Katie said, taking a seat.

Dee came up to the front and told everyone that they could start lining up for food starting with the back tables.

"So," Mitchie began, "Katie, what do you think of camp so far?"

"I'm not sure. The campus is nice and open but also small enough that I don't think I'll be getting lost anytime soon."

"That's good to hear, maybe you and I can walk to class together because I know I'll get lost," Alicia commented.

The girls continued to have small conversations until Dee came and dismissed them for dinner.

After dinner, the girls returned to their cabins to relax and look their schedules over one last time.

Mitchie pulled her guitar out again and began working on chords for the song she had started earlier.

_Beep, beep, beep, beep._

Mitchie's phone told her that she had a neglected message.

"Caitlyn, can you please check and see if it was Shane? I really don't want to hear him mad at me."

Caitlyn sighed and took the phone from Mitchie. She listened to the message, and handed the phone back.

"Yep, it was Shane. He didn't sound mad, just concerned."

"Ok, well, I guess I can listen to it then," Mitchie said, feeling guilty that she hadn't been a big girl and looked at it her self earlier.

_Hey Mitchie, it's Shane. I just wanted to say I'm sorry about the whole yelling at you thing. I over reacted. _

_Abigail seems…ok. She's nicer than her sister about this whole break up thing. I'll give her that. _

_Just be careful who you hang out with. I-I care about you. I don't want to see her hurt you. I'm really, really sorry. I-I should be a better…friend. _

_I know you called Nate. I really wish you would have called me, but I understand. You thought that I was mad at you, and I was, but I'm not anymore and I'm really, really sorry. _

_Call me back. I have a song I want you to hear. Bye._

Mitchie sighed.

_A song? What kind of song did he write? Maybe I should call him…he called at…_

Mitchie looked at the time on the call.

…_12:30 and I still haven't called him back and it's seven._

Mitchie got up, took her phone, and left the cabin. She dialed the number and headed towards the dock, her and Shane's special place for each other.

_Hey…_

"Hey Shane, I'm sorry I didn't call earlier. It's just I thought you were mad at me so I didn't really want to hear you yell-

_I'm not here right now…probably on stage or somewhere without service…leave a message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can._

_Beeeep_

Mitchie sighed.

_Of course he's on stage. I knew he had a gig tonight. What was I thinking?_

Mitchie hung up the phone and called Tess.

_Hello?_

"Hey Tess, it's Mitchie. What's up?"

_Oh the guys are in lock down for before the show and my mom is getting ready to go on… but other than that nothing._

"Oh sorry, I'll call back later."

_No, it's ok. I've seen my mom perform these songs a hundred times in rehearsal. What's on your mind?_

"I just wanted to know if Shane was ok. I didn't call him back and when we talked last, he seemed pretty ticked at me."

_Yea, he's better. He spent the whole afternoon helping Nate study for a test and trying to keep his mind of the fact that you hadn't called back._

"Ha-ha… oops."

_Don't worry about it. He's busy focusing on music right now. I'm sure he'll call again when he gets off stage. Nate had to stop him from calling at least four times._

"Ok. That's good… that he's focusing. That's why I said no anyway.

"I'll let you go, I need to call a friend from home and you should be there to support your mom. Sorry I called before thinking."

_It's fine. I'll talk to you later. Bye._

"Bye."

Mitchie sat down on the bench and watched the sun set.

* * *

"Wahoo! We rocked it!" Nate said coming off stage and high fiving his best friends.

"Yea, the crowd was screaming really loud," Jason said taking out his hear piece and massaging his ear.

"That's the first thing that's gotten my mind off Mitchie all day!" Shane cheered, knowing that this would make his friends happy more that it made him happy.

Shane pulled out his cell phone as the trio headed towards the dressing rooms.

_One missed call: Mitchie_

_I can't believe I missed her._

Tess came up behind the trio and congratulated them on a job well done.

"Thanks," Nate and Jason said together.

"Yea, thanks, Tess," Shane said as he walked into his dressing room still staring at his phone.

Tess followed him in.

"She called me after she tried you. She's fine. Relax. She got your message and can't wait to hear from you. She said something about being happy that you were focusing on your music just like she asked."

"You got to talk to her?"

"Yea, she called while you were in lock down."

"Oh. Why is it that I'm always the one to get information last?

"She was upset about me so she talks to Nate; she's upset she can't talk to me so she calls you. Why do I keep missing her?"

"Shane, relax and call her now," Tess said, leaving the room and closing the door.

Shane looked down at his phone again and saw what time it was.

_11:00 pm. Mitchie's probably asleep. I don't want to wake her but I won't be able to sleep until I hear her voice._

Shane dialed Mitchie's number.

_Hello._ A groggy Mitchie's voice said.

"Hey, did I wake you?"

_Yea, but we need to talk so let's talk._

"You sure? I can call you in the morning if it's better."

_I'm awake now and you'll be asleep until I start classes and then we won't be able to talk until next weekend._

"Why can't we talk tomorrow night?"

_You have a gig. Tess gave me your schedule._

"Right. Ok, so what I really want to say is I'm really sorry."

_I got your message I know. What is really interesting me is your new song._

"I don't have my guitar with me. I just got off, but I'll sing it for you next time we talk."

_Ok. I need to go back to bed, but you need to know that I forgive you and I might not be able to be the most dedicated friend._

"I know. School comes first yada, yada, yada."

_Ok, Shane. I'll talk to you soon._

"Bye Mitchie."

_Bye pop-star._

Shane hung up the phone. Now he would be able to sleep.

* * *

**How was that? I hope you liked it. LONG reviews please! =) ~Lacey~**


	22. First Day

**Ok this is my attempt to get though a whole day in a chapter. Sorry it's pretty long. More than 20 pages in a word document. I hope you enjoy it. Ok so the songs are from Rose Falcon (Up, Up, Up), the Beatles (Hello, Goodbye) (redone by the Jonas Brothers), Kelli Lynn (Out the Door) (special permission; if you steal, you are no fan of ours), Demi Lovato (Behind Enemy Lines) and Taylor Swift (Forever and Always).**

* * *

**LAST TIME**

_Ok, Shane. I'll talk to you soon._

"Bye Mitchie."

_Bye pop-star._

Shane hung up the phone. Now he would be able to sleep.

* * *

**NOW**

'_Hey you, don't let 'em see you frown, Come on turn it upside down. Don't ever quit, get up, get up. When life, puts you to the test, there's nothing better than your best. Show 'em what you got, you got a lot. Show 'em what you got, get up, get up. Get up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up.'_

_Ugg time to get up…I wonder if mom really needs me this morning…maybe I could sleep in just a couple more minutes. NO I can't it's the first day of school…_

Mitchie got out of bed and got dressed. She slipped a pair of flip-flops on and left the cabin going towards the mess hall.

"Morning mom," Mitchie said as she pushed open the door to the kitchen.

"Good morning sweetie. Ready for your first day of school?"

Mitchie simply nodded and put on her apron.

"Let's get started. Start cracking eggs into that bowl then scramble them and put them on the frying pan," Connie instructed as Mitchie approached the work table.

Mitchie and Connie had been working side by side for about an hour when Caitlyn poked her head in.

"Mitchie, I thought I'd find you here."

"Hey Caitlyn what's up?"

"You left your phone in the cabin and it started ringing.

"Rachel was there because she needed to borrow something from Abby. It was Shane."

Mitchie's face showed sheer horror.

"Did she see it?"

"She may have. She picked it up and asked who's it was. I grabbed it out of her hand and said that you would probably be looking for it later.

"Then I came here, but Alicia's phone started ringing as I left. I think it might have been Nate."

"Oops. I hope she didn't see."

"I guess you'll find out in class. Can you come to breakfast now? Abby is eating with her sister and Alicia is running slowly this morning."

"Um… Mom?"

"Go honey. I got everything under control. I'll see you at lunch," Mitchie's mom said, over hearing the conversation.

"Ok. Bye mom, love you."

"Bye, Mrs. Torres," Caitlyn said, pulling Mitchie out the door, "Here."

Caitlyn handed Mitchie her phone and they entered the filling mess hall looking for a seat.

Lola waved them over to her seat with Ella, Katie, Peggy _Peggy?_, and another girl that wasn't familiar.

"Peggy!" Mitchie and Caitlyn yelled together.

"Mitchie, Caitlyn! Hey, how are you?"

"We're great. How was recording with Shane?"

"Oh, it was fun, but he couldn't stop talking about one girl in particular."

Peggy smiled at Mitchie.

_Wow. I didn't know that he had it that bad for me. Oh, well. He's doing what I asked him to and I think things are better that way._

'_You say goodbye and I say hello, hello hello. I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello. Hello hello, I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello'_

"Hello?" Mitchie answered her cell phone.

_Finally you answer._

"Sorry Nate. Caitlyn told me Shane called but my phone was in the cabin and I was working with my mom."

_Ah. I see. Well we just called to say good luck to you and Caitlyn._

"Aw. You guys are so sweet."

_We try. Hey, any idea why Alicia didn't answer her phone this morning?_

"Um… Caitlyn would know better than I would here."

Mitchie handed the phone to Caitlyn.

"Hello?" Caitlyn answered in a questioning way.

"Oh yea…Rachel was borrowing a sweatshirt from Abby… Yea I can do that… Oh yea 555-7624… Yep…Ok… Bye."

Caitlyn handed the phone back to Mitchie. She put it up to her ear.

"Nate?"

_Yea I'm still here._

"Can I talk to Shane for a second. I just want him to know about something."

_Sure… SHANE_

_Mitchie?_

"Sorry Shane, I didn't think you would call this early so I left my phone in my cabin."

_It's ok. I just wanted to wish you luck._

"Aw thanks. I think you should know that Caitlyn thinks that Rachel may have seen you call me.

"She was in the cabin when you tried to call earlier."

_Oh. I'm hoping she didn't._

"Me too."

_I guess you'll find out soon enough. Right? When do you have her for class?_

"I don't remember. I lost my schedule. I think I see Dee passing out new ones anyway."

_Ok. Well, I'm gonna let you get back to breakfast and I'll talk to you later, ok?_

"Ok, pop-star. Don't call after your concert tonight though. Ok? I need to sleep."

_Ooook. School and the band are more important than us being together to you right now yada, yada, yada. Bye Mitchie._

"Bye, Shane."

Mitchie hung up the phone and put it back in her pocket.

Dee came by and handed schedules out again.

**Period Time Class Teacher**

**1 6:30-7:00 Breakfast Preparation Torres- Kitchen**

**2 7:00-7:30 Breakfast Staff– Mess Hall**

**3 7:35-7:55 Dance Ms. Catsing– Dance Studio**

**4 8:00-8:45 Music Production Ms. Spray– Studio 1**

**5 8:50-9:35 English Mr. Brookram- Class 2**

**6 9:40-10:25 Lyric Writing Ms. Swiff- Class 3**

**7 10:30-11:05 Physics Mr. Berry- Lab 4**

**8 11:10-11:55 Voice Brown- Main Studio**

**9 12:00-12:30 Lunch Preparation Torres - Kitchen**

**10 12:35-1:00 Lunch Staff - Mess Hall**

**11 1:05-1:50 Spanish 5(private study) Mr. Dominguez- Class 1**

**12 1:55-2:40 Guitar Ms. Anadeski- Class 5**

**13 2:45-3:30 American History Mr. Demicon- Class 8**

**14 3:35-4:10 Functions/Trigonometry Mr. Levalo- Class 6**

**15 4:15-5:00 Piano Ms. Summit- PC 2**

**16 5:05-5:30 Dinner Preparation Torres - Kitchen**

**17 5:30-6:00 Dinner Staff - Mess Hall**

**18 6:00-9:00 Homework and Study ____- CABIN**

**__ 9:00-11:30 Free Time ____- CAMP REC.**

**__ 11:30 Lights Out ____- CABIN**

**Class-Classroom Camp Rec.-Camp Recreation Room PC- Practice Cabin**

Mitchie looked over her schedule as she and the girls got up from breakfast and headed out of the mess hall.

_That's funny…Brown didn't say he would be teaching Voice lessons. Some one else was supposed to be teaching Voice. Mr. Polish right? Ha-ha he has a funny last name like shoe polish._

"Does anyone else have Brown for Voice?"

Everyone shook their heads no except Peggy.

"I have Polish," Lola said.

"Me too," Ella agreed

"Yep, Polish is for me too," Caitlyn commented.

"I have Anadeski for Voice and Guitar," Katie said.

"Oh, Katie. Me too!" the quiet girl that had sat with them at breakfast spoke up.

"I'm sorry… You sat with us at breakfast and I still don't know your name," Caitlyn commented.

"Oh, I'm Amy Jonas. You don't need to tell me your names I picked them up at breakfast."

"Oh, well it's nice to meet you Amy," Mitchie said, smiling.

"Does anyone have dance first?" Caitlyn asked.

Two hands shot up. Mitchie and Amy's.

"Well. I guess we should head to class then. Bye guys," Caitlyn said leading her classmates in the direction of the dance studio.

When the girls arrived in the dance studio, Barron was already there stretching out. Or was he really stretching. Mitchie looked around the room and spotted a few other girls in the far corner talking and giggling about something. She looked back at Barron.

_Which one is it? He's interested in one of them I can see it in his eyes. Oh poor Barron, he looks kinda guilty now. Maybe he caught me seeing him check who ever it is out._

"Hey Caitlyn, hey Mitchie," Barron said waving towards them.

"Hey Barron. I would like to introduce… Amy, right?" Mitchie said.

Amy nodded and extended her hand and Barron took it. He gave her a smile and then let go.

"So which of those chica's were you staring at?" Caitlyn asked, as the girls sat down next to Barron.

_Ha, ha… So I wasn't the only one who noticed._

Barron turned slightly red and kept quiet.

Amy changed the subject by asking him about his schedule. They would have Physics together.

More people began to file into the room along with a frizzy haired blonde woman who looked to be in her late forties. She stood about 5'9" and looked even taller after she told the class to sit down.

"Hi everybody. I'm Ms. Catsing. I'll be teaching the dance classes this year.

"I have been involved in dance since I was five. I have done any and all types of dancing and you will experience them too.

"I majored in dance education in collage and worked with a dance company until I was twenty-nine. I have been teaching dance ever since then. Any questions before we move on?"

Ms. Catsing looked around the room. No hands had gone up so she took it as a signal to start class.

"Ok, seeing as I did not tell you to wear gym shoes, I would like you to take off your shoes and put them against that wall."

She pointed to the wall behind where Mitchie and the others sat. Everyone got up and took off their shoes as directed. Then they went back to sit down for more instructions.

"Ok, today we are going to start by getting to know each other.

"I would like you to pair up with some one you don't know. One of you choose Hairspray the other choose Grease."

Everyone got up and found a partner. Mitchie was paired with a girl about two years younger than her named Lulu. Ms. Catsing instructed them to have a type of dance off against each other and show off their moves.

After they had done that, Ms. Catsing told them to find a new partner and have another dance off. This continued until everyone knew each other by name.

A loud bell ran through out the camp, signaling the end of the class. The students grabbed their shoes and left for their next class.

Mitchie said goodbye to Caitlyn and Amy and headed to her production class in studio 1. When she got there, she was amazed at all the high tech equipment that there was in the room.

"Hi, I'm Ms. Spray. What's your name?"

Mitchie turned around to see a short brunette with glasses.

"Hi. I'm Mitchie Torres."

"It's a pleasure to meet you. I met your mom a while back and she had nothing but good things to say about you."

"Oh, she's just being biased. I'm nothing special," Mitchie brushed it off; trying not to blush because of the embarrassment her mother had just caused her.

"Mr. Brown said things very similar."

Mitchie blushed deep red. It was one thing for her mother to say things about her but it was quite another for Brown to boast about her.

More students were now entering the studio. Most of them were also awestruck about how the place looked.

"Hey Mitchie, I didn't know you and I were in the same class," Peggy said approaching her.

"Oh, cool. You're taking production too?"

"Yea, after the CD with Shane I wanted to see what happened on the other side of the window."

"I guess that makes sense."

Ms. Spray called the class to attention and introduced herself just as Ms. Catsing had done. She gave them an assignment and they got to work.

Their first assignment was to understand what all the equipment was. Mitchie partnered up with Peggy and began to write in answers to the matching worksheet that they both already knew. When they got stuck they took their new text book out and began to look up the pieces of equipment in the glossary. Peggy had just found the last piece when the bell rang signaling the end of the class for the day.

_Sweet… two classes and still no homework! I like this school._

Mitchie said goodbye to Peggy and headed toward Caitlyn's math class; it was on the way to English and Mitchie thought they could walk together.

"Hey Mitchie," Caitlyn said, leaving class with a smile on her face.

"Hey Caitlyn, you seem chipper."

Caitlyn smiled again.

"My math class is going to be so easy. I took an advanced math class last year and the first half of the year is going to be all review."

"Lucky you," Mitchie commented biting her lip.

_Functions sounds easy enough by name but Trigonometry sounds kinda scary. Oh well, I guess I can't say anything till I try it._

Mitchie and Caitlyn began to walk to class talking about how Mitchie's production class had gone and how much homework Caitlyn had for math. They had almost reached the class when they ran into Abigail.

"Hey guys," Abigail said, a smile on her face.

"Hey Abby, what's up?" Caitlyn questioned.

"Yea we haven't seen you all morning," Mitchie commented.

"Oh, yea. I had breakfast with Rachel. I really hate my schedule. My counselor put all my fun classes at the end of the day and I have one more class than you two do."

"Why is that?" Mitchie asked confused.

"I didn't want to drop dance for health so now I have to take it during my free period before lunch. I don't get that study hall that everyone else gets."

"Oh. That stinks. Why do you even have to take that class? I took it sophomore year," Caitlyn said.

"Alicia and I are sophomores. Didn't you know that?"

"Actually you and she seemed so grown up it didn't even cross my mind as a suggestion," Caitlyn answered in all honesty.

"Well, I better get going. I'll see you guys at lunch," Abigail smiled and walked away.

"Did you know she was a year younger?" Caitlyn asked Mitchie.

"No, but I suspected and I knew Alicia was a year younger because she's friend's with Nate's little sister and Nate and his sister are two years apart. Alicia also mentioned being a year older than Nate's sister so I guess I just figured it out in my head."

"Way to show me up brainiac," Caitlyn said entering the English classroom.

Mitchie laughed and followed her in. They found seats next to each other and waited for class to start.

"Good morning I'm Mr. Brookram. I will be your American English teacher this year. I want to start out by getting to know you in a different way.

"Your assignment for today is to write a short summary of the last few years of your life. I want the truth but I would like you to write it as if I was reading it out of a book. You may write in first or third person, but I would like you to write it as a fiction novel.

"For example, Mr. Brookram was a short, plump man with glasses. He was starting his first day in his teaching career at a small school in L.A.

"Then expand on it. I want to be able to understand you as a writer, a reader, and a person through this story."

Mr. Brookram handed out books and notebooks to all the students and then told them to begin writing.

Mitchie found it incredibly easy to write about her life. She started with the start of high school with Sierra and how nervous she had been.

_I miss Sierra. It wasn't until I was sitting writing this paper for Mr. Brookram that I realized how much my best friend means to me. Sure, I have Caitlyn, but she's just not the same. Caitlyn and I have music and boys and school, but Sierra and I go way back. We knew everything about each other, we have always supported each other and this is the longest I have gone without talking to her. Oh, man I miss her. _Mitchie thought.

She also talked about how she had gone though school with mostly A's and B's but not many friends. She then talked about how she had gotten to come to Camp Rock and had made a ton of friends through it.

_I wonder what Jason, Nate and Shane are doing right now. I hope they are having more fun than I am. School isn't bad yet but it's not my cup of tea. I wonder what Shane is thinking right now. I hope he's not thinking about me. Well…I hope he is, but I hope he isn't at the same time. I lo-care about Shane, but he and I both know that we shouldn't be together right now._

Mitchie jumped. The bell had rung for the end of the period.

_How much did I write? Wow 4 pages, not bad._

"For homework tonight I would like you to start on the vocabulary words on page 16. I want you to use them in sentences and turn them into me tomorrow. Turn in your papers and you may go," Mr. Brookram dismissed the class.

Mitchie and Caitlyn turned in their papers and left the room headed for classroom 3. They waved as Alicia passed in the other direction and smiled at Sander as he walked by.

_This day is going so fast. It's already period 6 and I haven't had a class with out a friend yet._

Mitchie and Caitlyn entered the classroom. It was plastered with posters of famous singers and lyricists. Ms. Swiff was sitting in the front of the room on a stool talking to someone.

"Is that Rachel?" Caitlyn asked, as she sat down at a desk in the front of the room.

"It sure looks like it."

"I'm glad you like it. It's kind of a break up song with Shane and everything, you know?" Mitchie overheard Rachel saying.

"Yep. It's definitely Rachel."

Rachel rolled up the piece of paper she was holding and left after waving at Mitchie with a smile.

"Hello. I'm Ms. Swiff. I'm here to help you write, not teach you to write.

"You have your own passion to sing and play what you want. I had the same life style back when I was working for the record companies helping aspiring artists like the Backstreet Boys write their lyrics for their first CD."

There were a lot of shocked looks to find out that their teacher had experience with top bands. Well, the band may not be a top band now, but at one time they were famous. That is more that these students could say for themselves.

"To start today I would like to ask you about some emotions you find in music."

Mitchie's hand went up. Ms. Swiff pointed at her.

"Anger or frustration."

"Good. Any more?"

Caitlyn raised her hand as well. Ms. Swiff picked her.

"Jealousy or sadness."

"Good I think we have enough to work with today. I would like you to come up with a couple things that would make you angry and see what types of lyrics you can come up with."

She passed out notebooks to everyone in the class.

_Great… another notebook. I guess I'm gonna have a lot of notebooks. This is number 3 and I'm sure I'll need one for math and physics too. Gosh I'm gonna be loaded down._

Everyone took out a pencil and began to put down ideas. Mitchie had a little trouble at first. She was happy with her life and she did not think she could come up with something sad. Then she realized that all she had to do was think about how mad she would be if Shane kissed Tess and then lied about it. Then the words flowed right out.

'_So I'm saying good-bye to you, Good luck find finding someone who,_

_Will deal you and all your lies, Three months ago should've been goodbye._

_Don't tell me that goodbye hurts, cause for you I'm hoping the worst,_

_I've never been through this before, and I thought I'd be harder but here I am walking out the door.'_

Mitchie knew that it wasn't true but allowing herself to worry about it made it easy to write. She knew that Shane felt some of this when he realized she had lied. She was embracing what he must have been thinking about at the time.

Mitchie continued to write, words flowing from somewhere deep inside. She did not care that they were not necessarily true of herself, but she knew that it would speak to some one.

The bell rang and the class got up and left. It looked like the music related classes would not be giving homework.

Lab 4 was small. It had several lab benches and not regular desks. Mitchie sat down next to Caitlyn, but Caitlyn spotted a person she recognized from her parent's hometown and went to sit with her. Mitchie did not mind. It gave her time to herself and she liked working alone on science related things.

_Great…a class without a friend…kinda…I wonder how Sierra is doing without me…Gosh I miss her…Maybe I should call her after class._

"Hello, I'm Mr. Berry," Mr. Berry interrupted Mitchie's thoughts; "I will be your Physics teacher this year."

Mr. Berry passed out books and notebooks and began class as if it was the middle of a semester. Mitchie was so busy taking down notes, that she did not notice her cell phone light up in her day sack.

* * *

Shane woke up to Nate shaking him.

"Nate, let me sleep. We have four hours until we get to the venue. I'm tired can't you wake me then?"

"It's Mitchie's first day. I figured you would want to call her and wish her good luck. It would seem better if it came from her friend or future boyfriend that from his best friend and her new friend."

Shane rolled out of bed. Nate had a point. _But why does he have to have a point this early in the morning._

Nate handed Shane his phone _6:15 am_. Shane dialed Mitchie's number and waited.

_Why isn't she picking up? She was always up this early during camp. Isn't she helping her mom still? Maybe she forgot her cell phone in the cabin. Maybe she forgot her cell phone at the new house or something…_

Shane started to panic. He knew that Mitchie was responsible, but for some reason he was scared that she would not pick up his phone calls.

_I must still be jazzed about the whole avoiding me thing last week. It's nothing to worry about right?_

Mitchie's voice was finally heard.

_Hey this is Mitchie-_

"Hey Mitchie, it's Shane. I just wanted to wish you good luck on your first day of school. Nate and Jason say hi and good luck too… Mitchie?"

_I'm not here right now; leave a message after the beep_

"Did I ever tell you how much I hate your message machine? I've talked to it thinking it was you twice… anyway I just wanted to wish you good luck and I guess I'll call you later. I hope your didn't leave this anywhere because I want to hear from you soon. I lo-miss you. Bye."

Nate looked at Shane with confusion.

"Message machine," Shane answered plainly before plopping back into his bed.

Nate nodded and took out his phone and called Alicia.

He waited, and waited, and waited.

"That's funny. Alicia isn't answering either. She normally answers on the second ring."

"And you would know this because?" Jason said, coming out of the bathroom.

"Jason. You've been listening to us the whole time?" Nate asked.

"No. I started listening when Shane said my name. Then I realized that he was on the phone so I just kinda listened from the door."

Shane laughed a little.

"I was just about to ask Nate the same question Jason," Shane said turning to Nate.

"She's my sister's best friend. I've known her since she was four. Is that weird that I talk to her about music? My sister is into the whole painting type art and Alicia is in to music. Come on. I grew up with her at my house all the time. She's more like a sister to me than Sarah is."

Shane and Jason gave him a look.

"Really, I'm not kidding."

Shane rolled over and went back to sleep for a little while. Jason got dressed and when out to watch Animal Planet while Nate tried Mitchie.

_Why did I fail to get Caitlyn's number this summer? She probably would answer her phone. I have no clue how to get a hold of anyone with out their stupid phone. Oh, well. Maybe this is a good excuse to get Caitlyn's phone number._

Nate followed Jason out to watch television for a little while. He had slept enough and was probably the only one who would watch what Jason wanted all day so he sat down and let his thoughts drift where he wanted while he watched polar bears migrate north with Jason.

About a half and hour later Nate decided to try Mitchie again. He knew that she had not missed the call on purpose and she probably had left her phone somewhere else.

_Hello?_

"Finally you answer," Nate breathed out a sigh of relief.

_Sorry Nate. Caitlyn told me Shane called but my phone was in the cabin and I was working with my mom._

"Ah. I see. Well we just called to say good luck to you and Caitlyn."

_Aw. You guys are so sweet._

"We try. Hey, any idea why Alicia didn't answer her phone this morning?" Nate commented with a shaky laugh.

_Um… Caitlyn would know better than I would here._

Nate heard the phone being passed.

_Hello?_ Caitlyn answered in a questioning way.

"Hey Caitlyn. It's Nate. I was just wondering if you knew why Alicia didn't answer her phone this morning."

_Oh yea…Rachel was borrowing a sweatshirt from Abby._

"Can you let her know I want to wish her good luck on her first day and that her big brother says hi?"

_Yea I can do that._

"Cool. I just have one more question before you give the phone back to Mitchie. Can I have your number?"

_Oh yea 555-7624_.

"555-7624?"

_Yep_.

"Good luck with classes and I'll call you later.

_Ok_.

"Bye Caitlyn."

_Bye._

Nate heard the phone being passed again.

_Nate?_

"Yea I'm still here."

_Can I talk to Shane for a second? I just want him to know about something._

"Sure."

Nate went to Shane's bunk and shook him into consciousness.

"SHANE!"

Nate handed Shane the phone mouthing the word "Mitchie."

"Mitchie?"

_Sorry Shane, I didn't think you would call this early so I left my phone in my cabin._

"It's ok. I just wanted to wish you luck."

_Aw thanks. I think you should know that Caitlyn thinks that Rachel may have seen you call me._

_She was in the cabin when you tried to call earlier._

"Oh. I'm hoping she didn't."

_Me too._

"I guess you'll find out soon enough. Right? When do you have her for class?"

_I don't remember. I lost my schedule. I think I see Dee passing out new ones anyway._

"Ok. Well, I'm gonna let you get back to breakfast and I'll talk to you later, ok?"

_Ok, pop-star. Don't call after your concert tonight though. Ok? I need to sleep._

"Ooook. School and the band are more important than us being together to you right now yada, yada, yada. Bye Mitchie."

_Bye, Shane._

Shane hung up the phone and handed it back to Nate. He was up and there was no going back to sleep.

Shane got dressed and went up to the front where he found the guys watching Animal Planet.

"Are you seriously watching Animal Planet when we could be watching anything we want?" Shane asked.

Nate and Jason nodded without taking their eyes off the screen. Shane looked at it again. It was a special on polar bears and their young.

_Ew! That is so gross why would anyone watch this? Well, I guess Nate and Jason are just different. Ah, I love my band mates._

Shane joined the guys on the couch and watched for a little while and then got up to get dressed.

Soon enough the boys had reached the venue and had to go in for sound check before heading to the hotel for showers and about an hour of sight seeing around Dallas.

Shane got off the bus first only to be pushed over slightly by a blonde head of hair and the paparazzi right behind her. He looked down to see Tess.

_Of course. Tess is my cover up for my feelings for Mitchie. Just play along. You talked to Mitchie this morning… there is nothing to worry about._

Shane hugged Tess back and pulled her with him though the crowd towards the stadium. Nate and Jason were right behind them the whole time.

There was no doubt about it. The paparazzi had gotten prime pictures of Shane looking at Tess and hugging her too.

Once in the building, Shane and Tess let go of each other and Tess when to go find her mom while Shane followed the stadium manager to the stage.

Tess pulled out her cell phone and texted Mitchie.

_Mitchie-_

_Pictures might b out soon. The paparazzi got some of Shane getting off the bus with me hugging him. I was running for his bus for cover and it worked perfectly that he was the 1st one out of the bus. Sorry it couldn't be you. Hope ur day is going good._

_-Tess_

"Tess, honey, where did you run off to? I've been looking for you ever since the bus stopped."

Tess turned around to see her mom standing there.

"Sorry Mom. I was with Shane and the guys."

"It's ok. Now, I need your help. I have a signing in about an hour and I was hoping that you could take my stuff to my dressing room before starting on your term work.

"I know you would much rather watch your mother sign thousands of autographs, but you need to get the work done or you will be back at a boarding school."

"Yea, Mom. I get it."

Tess turned around and headed back to the door to get her mom's wardrobe trunk.

_Why did is say I wanted to do this again? I could be hanging around with Peggy and Ella right now. Gosh! This is so not cool. Being my mom's slave is not what I had in mind._

* * *

The bell went off calling the end of 7th period. Mitchie said goodbye to Caitlyn and headed off for the main studio for Voice lessons.

"Hello puppet," Brown greeted her as she walked into the studio.

"Hi Brown. Where is the rest of the class?"

"You are the class. Your vocals this summer were so amazing and with the reviews from your transfer, I thought that it would be better if you had private lessons. You'll learn more this way and I can teach a couple students one on one."

"So Peggy and I are your only students?"

"There are two more, but they are transfers from out of the country and it's been a complicated morning.

"Why don't we get started?"

Mitchie nodded.

"How about you sing one of your originals for me and then I will critique it and you can sing it again?"

"Sounds good. What do you want me to sing? I haven't really written anything new since camp."

"Sing what comes to your heart."

Mitchie nodded.

_'I can feel, feel a deep connection,  
And I feel, we might be onto something,  
And I know it's something special,  
Seeing you here, is not coincidental,_

'Cause now I'm walkin, walkin, behind enemy lines,  
And I've been fighting, fighting, from the other side,  
I've been saying, saying, I won't fall this time,  
And now I'm walkin, walkin, within enemy lines.

'I was trying to be everything you weren't expecting,  
All I ever wanted was to try and keep you guessing,  
Now I'm falling way too fast,  
I just want this love to last, forever,  
But inside me something's changed,  
Oh, something, for the better.

'And now I'm walkin, walkin, behind enemy lines,  
And I've been fightin, fighting, from the other side,  
And I've been saying, saying, I won't fall this time,  
Now I'm walkin, walkin, within enemy lines

'Oooh Ooooh

'And now I'm walkin, walkin, behind enemy lines,  
And I've been fightin, fighting, from the other side,  
And I've been saying, saying, I won't fall this time,  
Now I'm walkin, walkin, within enemy lines'

"That was wonderful love. Now I want you to take it again but put more feeling into it. I want you to feel the words you are singing as if you were feeling the emotions you were feeling when you wrote it."

Mitchie nodded and started from the top. This continued until the end of class. Brown gave her a couple of exercises to work on her voice and had her sing one more time for a recording so that she would know how much she improved by listening to it the next day in class after a little more work.

Now was time for lunch preparation with Mrs. Torres. Mitchie was happy to have time to spend with her mom, but she was really looking forward to having an easy afternoon and some time off. The day seemed to be flying, but it also seemed to drag at the same time.

"Hey mom," Mitchie greeted her mom as she entered the kitchen.

"Hi, honey. How is your day going so far?"

"Pretty good. Did you know that I was getting private voice classes?"

Mrs. Torres shook her head while her smile grew.

"Is Brown your teacher sweetie?"

"Yea. How did you know?"

"Well, we had a staff meeting while you were at breakfast and he said he had a few special students that he would be teaching. He didn't say your name but he looked at me as if I was supposed to guess it was you."

"Well, anyway, he is recording me everyday so I know how much I improve daily and I have had a pretty good morning so far."

"Do you have a lot of homework? If you do I can handle dinner on my own. It's really up to you."

"I think I can handle the homework for now. I only have homework for English and it's not hard."

"Ok. Well, let's get to work. I want you to start ripping lettuce. We are having taco salad for lunch."

Mitchie nodded and went to the refrigerator. She pulled out the lettuce, washed it, and started ripping it. When she finished, she put the cheese in to bowls and set out the tortilla chips in bowls on the buffet table.

Mrs. Torres let her go for lunch and told her to come back before dinner even if she had a lot of work. She wanted to know her daughter was still alive. Mitchie had found this funny but had agreed anyway.

Mitchie left the kitchen and found a seat in the mess hall with Lola.

"Was your morning as brutal as mine was?" Lola asked.

"Was it bad?" Mitchie asked.

"I have so much homework. For math I have thirty math problems, I have vocabulary for English and I have so much chemistry reading do tomorrow my head is going to spin."

"I'm sorry. I took chemistry last year, so if you need help I might be able to help you. I have the English vocabulary too and I haven't had math yet, but I'm sure I'll have more homework than you do because it's a senior class."

"Why are you taking a senior class?"

"I took a math class over the summer the year before Camp Rock with my best friend, Sierra. I got a year ahead and so they put me in the year above class."

"That's really cool. I wish I could do that."

"Hey, Mitchie, I was wondering if you could help me with this math problem," Caitlyn called as she approached the table.

Mitchie turned to see Caitlyn bag on her shoulder and notebook balanced on her book. It was quite a sight to see. Mitchie had seen Caitlyn loaded down with music supplies but she had never thought of her as studious in the least.

"Sure Caitlyn, I'd be happy to help you."

Caitlyn sat down and laid her book out next to her notebook and took out a pencil. Mitchie walked her though the problem and helped her a little more while the girls ate lunch. More friends joined as the period went one, but it was over all too soon and everyone said goodbye and headed to their classes.

Mitchie and Caitlyn headed toward classroom 1. They were slightly nervous about the class. Caitlyn was in Spanish 3 at her old school and was not as sure of herself as Mitchie was. Mitchie was nervous because she had barely spoken Spanish at all since her trip to Mexico to visit her grandmother during the last winter vacation. As it was, her grandmother spoke broken English and they were able to communicate rather well.

The girls entered the classroom to see travel posters all over the wall in different languages. There were posters from Germany, China, France, Spain, Mexico and a couple others Mitchie could not place.

"Hola," the teacher said from the desk, "Me llamo Sr. Dominguez. Bienvenidos a español. ¿Cómo se llaman?" (*For the non-Spanish speakers*: Hello, my name is Mr. Dominguez. Welcome to Spanish. What are your names?)

"Me llamo Mitchie, y este es Caitlyn." (My name is Mitchie and this is Caitlyn.)

"Buenas tardes. ¿Qué nivel de español tienen?" (Good afternoon. What level of Spanish do you have?)

"Cinco," Mitchie stated. (Five.)

"Cuatro," Caitlyn responded. (Four.)

Mr. Dominguez handed the girls each notebooks, work books (Mitchie's in green and Caitlyn's in blue), and told them where to sit.

Mitchie was placed in the back at a computer. _I guess this is what they meant by independent study._

Caitlyn was placed in the middle of the class room at another computer. She needed more help so she was to be placed closer to the teacher.

The class filled up more and it was odd to see that not everyone that entered the room was taking the same language.

Mr. Dominguez stood at the front of the class.

"Hello. I'm Mr. Dominguez. As you may have noticed, you are not all in the same level or language as each other. I am fluent in many languages and you will be expected to learn at your own pace.

"You each have a computer equipped with the lesson plans that will help you learn the language. I will be walking around helping you out if you have any questions. These lessons were originally made for home school programs so they are pretty much self teaching. Don't be afraid to ask questions.

"Assignment one on your work sheet is due at the end of class. There will be a speaking test every Friday so don't slack off or lag behind. Get to work."

Mitchie pushed herself though the class. She was Mexican, but she was not fluent in the language as she had fooled Rachel in to thinking. She could speak Spanish in the way it was spoken in the streets of Mexico, but she could not speak proper Spanish nor did she speak it at home very often. Her father could not speak Spanish at all.

The class came to an end rather quickly. When the bell rang, Mitchie got up and handed Sr. Dominguez her work and waited for Caitlyn. Caitlyn quickly followed and the girls left together.

"That was hard," Caitlyn said as they exited the classroom and steered Mitchie toward their cabin to get their guitars.

"I know. I haven't spoken Spanish since last Christmas," Mitchie confided.

"Well, we better get off to Guitar. We don't want to give Rachel any reason to hate you, do we?"

Mitchie half smiled. She was really worried about Guitar. Not that she couldn't play, but Rachel was the teacher and her grade depended on her friends and her secret.

The girls entered the cabin, put down their morning supplies, and picked up their guitars.

_What if Shane texts me during the class or something? What if she saw my phone this morning and knows that Shane and I are in more contact than just Spanish lessons? What if she asks me to play for the class and I'm not prepared or what if I call her Rachel instead of Ms. Anadeski?_

Before she knew it, Mitchie was at the door step of classroom 5 and she could hear some one strumming a guitar inside.

"_Once upon a time, I believe it was a Tuesday when I caught your eye  
and we caught onto something  
I hold onto the night, you looked me in the eye and told me you loved me_

_"Were you just kidding?  
'cause it seems to me, this thing is breaking down  
We almost never speak  
I don't feel welcome anymore  
Baby what happened, please tell me?_

_"'cause one second it was perfect, now you're halfway out the door_

_"And I stare at the phone, he still hasn't called  
And then you feel so low you cant feel nothing at all  
And you flashback to when he said forever and always  
Oh, and it rains in your bedroom  
Everything is wrong  
It rains when you're here and it rains when you're gone  
Cause I was there when you said forever and always_

_"Was I out of line?  
Did I say something way too honest, made you run and hide  
Like a scared little boy  
I looked into your eyes  
Thought I knew you for a minute, now I'm not so sure_

_"So here's everything coming down to nothing  
Here's to silence that cuts me to the core  
Where is this going? Thought I knew for a minute, but I don't anymore_

_"And I stare at the phone, he still hasn't called  
And then you feel so low you cant feel nothing at all  
And you flashback to when he said forever and always  
Oh, and it rains in your bedroom  
Everything is wrong  
It rains when you're here and it rains when you're gone  
'cause I was there when you said forever and always  
You didn't mean it baby, I don't think so_

_"Back up, baby, back up  
Did you forget everything  
Back up, baby, back up  
Did you forget everything_

_"'cause it rains in your bedroom  
Everything is wrong  
It rains when you're here and it rains when you're gone  
'cause I was there when you said forever and always_

_"Oh, I stare at the phone, he still hasn't called  
And then you feel so low you cant feel nothing at all  
And you flashback to when we said forever and always_

_"And it rains in your bedroom  
Everything is wrong  
It rains when you're here and it rains when you're gone  
'cause I was there when you said forever and always  
You didn't mean it baby, you said forever and always I don't think so yeah"_

Mitchie opened the door and walked into the room with Caitlyn slightly behind her.

"Wow," Mitchie said, subconsciously letting her mouth hang open.

Rachel turned to see Mitchie and Caitlyn standing there.

"How long have you been standing there?" Rachel asked, a little paranoid, as always.

"Not long. Just long enough to be grateful we have you as a teacher," Caitlyn replied.

Rachel smiled.

"Are you writing a new record?" Mitchie inquired.

"No. Well, eventually I will, but that will be on the record that comes out soon. I recorded it last minute. It'll be public in November."

"That's cool. What is it about?" Caitlyn asked truly interested.

"My break up with Shane. It hit me really hard. I wasn't really expecting it…he seemed so down to earth when we hung out… then all of a sudden out of the blue he dumps me."

"I'm sorry," Mitchie said.

"Don't be. It's not like you had anything to do with it."

_I had everything to do with it…that's the problem._

More people started to enter the classroom and take out their guitars. Mitchie and Caitlyn took theirs out as well and found seats near the front.

"Good afternoon class. How have your days been so far?"

There was mumbling from the back of the class. Most people seemed to just want the day to end. It is always hard the first day.

"Ok. Well today we are just going to start with some simple things. How many of you by a show of hands, know how to play the guitar?"

Half the class raised their hands, including Mitchie.

"Ok good. Today we are going to be working on a simple C cord."

Ms. Anadeski fingered the cord on her guitar and showed the class. Then she showed them what the cord chart for it would look like and asked the experienced guitarists to pair up with the new guitarists while she went around helping out where she could.

This class when quickly as well. The only homework was to practice the cord that they had learned and look over the G cord for Tuesday.

The bell rang and everyone dispersed.

Mitchie's phone vibrated telling her she had missed a text message.

_Hmm… that's funny… I had my phone with me all day. Why didn't I get this earlier?_

Mitchie opened her phone to see that it was Tess. She smiled. Tess was still on her side and nothing was going to go wrong with Rachel. Life was good.

Mitchie read the text message:

_Mitchie-_

_Pictures might b out soon. The paparazzi got some of Shane getting off the bus with me hugging him. I was running for his bus for cover and it worked perfectly that he was the 1st one out of the bus. Sorry it couldn't be you. Hope ur day is going good._

_-Tess_

Mitchie quickly texted her back:

_Tess-_

_Thanks 4 the update. Hope the tour is going great. Wish the boys luck 4 me and I'll call l8er._

_-Mitchie_

"What was that?" Caitlyn asked.

"Oh, just a text."

Caitlyn did not know that Mitchie and Tess had made up and would have found it odd if they had given their past.

"From Shane?"

"No. A friend who is not at camp."

"Oh. So Sierra."

"No."

"Mitchie you gotta tell me sooner or later. You know that right?"

"I choose later," Mitchie said entering classroom 8.

Mr. Demicon was already in front of the class which was already half full.

"Hello girls."

"Hi," Caitlyn said, "Are we late?"

"No you still have two minutes if you need them."

The girls shook their heads and found seats in the middle near Sandler.

The class started at a fast pace. Mr. Demicon had a lot of experience in American history. He had been teaching in a suburb of Chicago for years and was delighted to be able to branch out and see new things as he was going to retire. He decided not to retire when this was given as an option of income.

Mr. Demicon passed out think notebooks and large books and the class started to take notes on his power point. No one thought that history would be so fast paced but it was.

The bell was just about to ring, when Mr. Demicon assigned a chapter of homework due the next day.

"If math wasn't bad enough," Caitlyn muttered under her breath as the bell rang.

Mitchie laughed and then said goodbye to Caitlyn and Sandler as she headed off to Functions/ Trigonometry.

Mitchie was running late as she entered Mr. Levalo's class and too the only available seat in the front.

"Hello, I'm Mr. Levalo. This year I will be preparing you for college with this course."

The class went rather quickly and before she knew it, Mitchie was done and headed to her next class loaded down with math problems and her heavy history book.

_Finally, an easy class. Piano. What more can Ms. Summit teach me? I've been playing since I was 5._

It turned out that Mitchie was right. There was not much the teacher could do for her and as a result, Mitchie got out a half an hour early and the teacher said that she could come every day for fifteen minutes and leave, as the classes had to be private lessons and she did have other people who wanted the slot.

Mitchie walked back to her cabin alone. It was weird to think that she was having a good day after all the homework had been piled on and she had classes longer than she had ever had before.

_Maybe I'll call Sierra and see how her first day back went. She's been out for an hour already._

Mitchie pulled out her phone as she entered her cabin. She dialed Sierra's number and waited for her to answer.

_Hello?_

"Hey Sierra, it's me."

_Oh hey Mitchie. What's up?_

"Not much. I was just wondering how your first day back went."

_It went well. John and I have two classes together and his sister has lunch with me. How about you? Is your schedule ok?_

"It's really busy, actually. I am thinking about dropping my piano class because it's just wasting my time."

_Wow, the first day and you are already dropping classes. That doesn't sound like the Mitchie I know. I guess it does make sense though. Why would you want the easy A when you could actually spend the time on something that you need more work on?_

"Exactly. So…Is John all settled? I can't wait to meet him."

_Yea, he's got almost everything unpacked and his sister got your room. She said that she's not going to change anything either. She loves the way you had it set up._

"Oh, that's cool. You're still coming down this weekend right?"

_I wouldn't miss it… I got to go. Homework…Oh… wait there is one more thing that I think you are going to be excited about._

"What?"

_Connect 3 is going to be in town next month and I scored two tickets! Maybe you can spend the weekend up here with me and we could go together._

Mitchie sighed. She wanted to go, but it would be hard to judge this far in advance if she would be able to go or not.

"I'll let you know. I'm not sure what's up and down here yet. Give me until Saturday when you come down for me to figure things out, ok?"

_Yea, that's fine. I'll talk to you later. Bye Mitchie._

"Bye Sierra."

Mitchie hung up the phone and pulled out her homework.

_What did I have for homework again?_

Mitchie pulled out her schedule.

_I have got to get a planner. _

_Ok so, nothing for dance, nothing for music production, vocabulary for English, nothing for lyrics, vocal practice for voice, study for Spanish, nothing for guitar, a chapter for history, 30 problems for math and no piano._

She pulled out her English vocabulary book and got to work forming sentences with the words.

_Ok, first word…microdont…Babies are microdont because they have not lost their baby teeth yet._

Mitchie continued her homework in silence until the bell rang letting her know that classes were over for the day. She closed up her books and headed to the kitchen to help her mom with dinner.

"Hey mom," Mitchie greeted as she walked into the kitchen and put on her apron.

"Hi honey. How was your first day?"

"Great, I'm dropping piano though."

"I figured you would, but I wanted to make sure that if you wanted it you could have it. That's fine you don't have to go anymore."

Mitchie was grateful that her mother was so open to her dropping the class. It would not mess with her schedule and she would be able to get more work done in the long run.

"What's for dinner?" Mitchie asked, wanting to get started.

"Torres' Burgers and fries," Connie replied.

"Yum. What do you want me to do?"

"You can start making meat patties for the burgers."

"Ok."

Mitchie and her mother talked while they worked and before they knew it, they were done.

"Mitchie, you can go now. Dinner is about to start and I know you want to sit with your friends."

"Actually mom, I was wondering if I could eat in here tonight. I need to make a phone call and now is the only time I can do it."

"Sure honey, but eat quick because I'm going to eat with the staff tonight and I don't want you back here alone."

"Ok."

Mitchie grabbed a burger and ate quickly before saying goodbye to Mrs. Torres and heading back to her cabin.

Mitchie pulled out her cell phone as she walked up the steps and opened the door.

_Hello?_

"Hey Tess it's Mitchie. How's it going?"

_Pretty good. My mom is at a photo shoot right now so I'm just chilling with Nate and doing some school work._

"Same here, well kinda. I ditched out on dinner so I could get done faster and I wouldn't have to avoid Rachel in the mess hall."

_Why are you avoiding her? She doesn't know anything yet._

"I'd like to keep both ends of this secret. Caitlyn doesn't even know you and I are talking."

_Is there something wrong with us being friends?_

"No, but Caitlyn would think it was weird. I just want to avoid questions."

_Sounds good. Oh, I just bought a magazine that already has a picture of me and Shane together…totally photo shopped, but I'll send you a copy. Do you have any access to the internet?_

"Yea," Mitchie said pulling out her laptop and turning it on.

_Check out …they have some interesting articles about me and Shane and I have to say that they are hilarious._

Mitchie went to the site. It was pretty funny to see Shane and Tess together. They were total actors. It almost looked as if Tess was enjoying being in Shane's arms.

"Tess?"

_Yea, I'm still here._

"I know you are trying to trick the media, but could you do it with a little less believability? I mean, it almost looks like you are in love with Shane."

_I'm supposed to be aren't I?_

"Yea, but this is almost too real."

_Ok, I'll work on it. I got to go help Nate with some Spanish work. I'll talk to you later._

"Ok. Bye."

Mitchie hung up the phone.

_Wow. That picture is so believable. What if Shane is falling for Tess? It could happen. I'm not around him and we are both trying not to get too close right now, but I think that I have a problem with this whole Tess thing._

Mitchie texted Shane.

_Shane-_

_I'm having 2__nd__ thoughts abt this lie…we need to talk…_

_-Mitchie_

**Ok. So what did you think? I know really long. Hope you liked it. Now... i have a contest the first three people to comment will be able to help me with an unresolved issue in the plot. Thanks for all the reviews. Please send me more. It will cheer me up. Thanks again to Kelli Lynn for your amazing music. Can't wait for the reviews. ~Lacey~**

* * *


	23. An Annoying Interview

**Enjoy!

* * *

**

LAST TIME

Mitchie hung up the phone.

_Wow. That picture is so believable. What if Shane is falling for Tess? It could happen. I'm not around him and we are both trying not to get too close right now, but I think that I have a problem with this whole Tess thing._

Mitchie texted Shane.

_Shane-_

_I'm having 2__nd__ thoughts abt this lie…we need to talk…_

_-Mitchie_

* * *

**NOW**

Shane looked down at his phone with slight regret. He had not called her back or replied to her text. It had come right before his show and he was determined to listen to her and not call after his show even though he was dying to talk to her, to hear her voice.

_I knew she was going to have a problem with this eventually, but what am I supposed to do now? I can't just tell Tess it's "over." Mitchie never said to give up this charade, just that she was worried about it._

He left the room where Tess and Nate were working on Spanish and went to hang out with Jason who was working on some new cords.

"Hey Jase."

"What up bro?"

"Not much, just thinking."

"About Mitchie?"

Shane smiled.

"Yep, I'm right. Score one Jason!"

Jason pumped his arm and when back to strumming his guitar.

"I just don't know what to do," Shane confided in Jason, "Mitchie is worried about Tess…I thought she was fine with the whole thing and now she's saying she isn't. It's kind of hard to go back on this when the magazines already have pictures."

Jason put down his guitar and listened to Shane. Jason may not be the brightest bulb, but he was a better listener than Nate.

"Well, give her some time. Be happy that she still wants you. You know she doesn't want you for money or fame like Rachel did and she isn't trying to get recognition like Tess is, so just be happy she wants Shane the nice camp counselor, not Shane the rock star."

_That's true, Mitchie doesn't care that I'm famous… she just cares about me. Me…as a person. Wait… what did he say about Tess? Doesn't she have a mom to give her recognition? She doesn't need me…she's just, just helping me out…that's all._

"Thanks Jase. You're a great friend, you know that?"

"I don't know what I did, but I'll take the compliment."

_What happened? One second he has his head on strait and the next, he's back to crazy, brainless Jason._

Jason picked his guitar back up and started to strum, but was soon interrupted by George, the band manager coming into the room.

"Nate, can you join us for a minute?" George called into the room where Nate was studying his Spanish words.

Nate quickly joined his band mates.

"I want to go over this week's schedule while you guys are relaxing," George explained, "Today we have a gig in Georgia. It's only a concert like last night, but tomorrow you'll be in Florida working on your music video for 'Gotta Find You.'

"We are only shooting a little of it there, but you have an interview on Jommy and Lisa in the Morning. You will be singing one song there and then you have a Disney World concert that night in front of the castle."

"Cool, do we get to spend time like riding roller coasters?" Jason asked.

"You might get some time to do that after sound check, but we'll see. Your schedule is pretty packed," George responded, before going on about the rest of their schedule which would lead them up to New York by the end of the week.

"Can we film some of the music video at Camp Rock?" Shane blurted out, having not been paying attention to anything George had said past the bit about Disney.

Nate looked at him funny.

"Dude, how are we supposed to do that? Weren't you listening to anything George said? He wants the music video out by November. We don't even get to Arkansas until December right before our Christmas break in the tour and even then it's gonna be covered in snow."

"I know," Shane sighed, "It's just, I wrote that song there and it was written with a special girl in mind. I thought that it would be cool if she got a chance to be in the video."

George was interested now. He knew about all the celebrity gossip and truly believed that Tess was who Shane was with.

"But Tess is right here," George protested, "She can easily be in the music video."

"Yea. Tess could be the love interest in the video. Why didn't I think of that?" Jason jumped in, just to be smacked in the back of the head by Nate.

The bus came to a sudden halt and the boys all jerked forward.

"You know what; we'll talk about this later. You guys need to get in for sound check," George said pushing the guys towards the door.

Everyone made their way out of the bus and into the arena. There were no photographers yet. Only one woman looked like she was taking notes. She approached them with a smile.

"Hi, I'm Lina with Teen-Rock Magazine."

"Hi," the boys all responded.

"I was wondering if I could have a couple minutes of your time before sound check."

The boys looked to George. He nodded.

"Sure," Shane said with a fake smile.

Lina led them over to the back row of seats.

_This is weird. I haven't sat this far back since before I stated going to Camp Rock._

"So, first off, I want the deats on what happened this summer. You guys were all hyped up about your tour starting and then it was canceled. What's up with that?"

"Well," Nate took the question, "Shane needed to spend some time out of the lime light so he went to stay with his uncle for a couple months."

"What did you do while you were with your uncle?" Lina asked.

"I-"

"He was a camp counselor."

"I got this Jason," Shane answered, a little annoyed that he could not get a word in edgewise, "I worked at a camp called Camp Rock. It's where I met Nate and Jason. My uncle ran it this past summer and he needed some help with his hip-hop class."

"That's cool. Ok so everyone is dying to know who the blonde is in all the new pictures. Who is she?"

"She's TJ Tyler's daughter," Nate said, "She is on the road with us while her mom is opening. She was one of Shane's campers too."

"Ooh. We've heard rumor from Rachel that there is a new girl in Shane's life. Is TJ's daughter the girl?"

"N-"

"Yes," Shane said, blocking out Jason's answer.

"You? And Tess?" Jason asked, looking confused.

'_Rock what you got, rock what you got, don't ever let them make you stop. Rock what you got, light up the lot, no one can rock the way you rock.'_

Shane jumped out of his seat and grabbed his cell phone out of his back pocket.

"Excuse me," he said and dismissed himself to the outside of the arena.

"Mitchie?"

_Hey Shane._

"What's up? Aren't you supposed to be in class? It's only noon."

_Relax. I'm headed to meet my mom in the kitchen to help her with lunch. I just wanted to see how you were. You didn't text back yesterday._

"Oh, yea. I'm fine. I totally understand that you don't like me lying to the press and I can figure out a way to back out if you want me to."

_It's fine. I think I might have over reacted just a little._

"A little. Well let me know if you need me to. Ok? I'm glad that you are being open with me about this and I'll do anything to make you happy, you understand?"

_Oh…Tess that's so sweet._

"Tess?"

_Yea, I would love to come visit you on tour but I have too much with school and everything to come visit._

"Huh? Mitchie I'm really confused. Can you let me in on the secret?"

_Hang on._

Shane waited. He heard talking on the other end but it was all nonsense.

_Sorry Rachel has this period off and I was passing her._

"I see. Should I just tell her that I was lying and we can go back to having a semi secret friendship?"

_No. It's fine I can handle it. You need to be focusing on your music right now. I'm actually surprised you had time to talk to me._

"Nate, Jason and I had an interview. Thank you so much for calling it was becoming a nightmare."

_How so?_

"The ever dreaded girlfriend question. Yep, according to Teen-Rock, Tess and I are a couple."

_Wonderful. _

Mitchie sounded all but thrilled.

"We can get out of all of this as soon as you're ready."

_I know… it's just that I know I'm not. I mean…the only real reason I have time to talk now is because it's passing period and I have lunch with mom. Once school work picks up I know we won't be able to talk as much. You'll be in different time zones and I'll be pulling all nighters to study for tests. It's not really that great of a combination._

"We can make it work. I promise."

_I know you feel that way Shane, but what happens when the media finds out and they are swarming you trying to find out where I am. All of a sudden it's not about music and the band anymore. It would be all about you and me and that's not fair to Jason or Nate._

"I guess I can understand that, but over Christmas I'll be around…"

_Christmas is still at least three months away. I got to go. We'll talk about this later…Don't call tonight, ok? Good luck with your show. I'll see you in a couple weeks._

"Huh? What a couple weeks? When?"

_Bye Shane._

"Mitchie wait…"

The line went dead.

_What does she mean she'll see me in a couple weeks? I'm not going to Arkansas... what?_

Shane went back into the arena where the interview was rapping up. Shane approached the group.

"Well, can we get one group picture and we'll be out of your way?"

Shane answered with a polite, "yes."

The rest of sound check went relatively well. All the equipment was in order and Nate only had slight problems with the tuning of his guitar. After that, the boys had some time to go to a hotel, shower and take a short break before the concert in the evening.

* * *

Mitchie internally hit herself.

_Why did I call Shane! I thought I was going to keep my mind on school work… look how long that lasted…I needed to talk to him about it though, but it could have waited or been in an e-mail…do I even have his e-mail? I should probably get that…well, I have texting…but that is like constant communication… like talking on the phone and I said I wouldn't do that…I promised myself…_

"Mitchie, can you get started on the bead? We need to cut it for the subs for lunch."

"Sure, mom. Oh, and Caitlyn said she wants to help with dinner tonight. She said it isn't the same not helping in the kitchen."

"Oh, that's great. We could use the help tonight. We're having chicken poppikosh."

"Yum."

Mitchie and her mother worked in silence for a while.

"So Kayla called me."

"Kayla as in Sierra's mom Kayla?"

"Yes. She says that Sierra wants you to come down for a concert in a couple of weeks. You didn't say anything to me."

"I know."

"Why didn't you mention it?"

"I don't know. It's just, it's a Connect 3 concert and I think it would be weird to see Shane and not be able to _see_ him."

Mitchie's mom gave her a quizzical look.

"I know Shane as a person now. It would be weird to see him up on stage and not be connected to him," Mitchie explained, hoping her mom would understand.

She did and the conversation moved on.

"I still think you should go. It would be a time to go visit the town and spend time with Sierra. She was practically begging Kayla to pick you up even earlier."

"That's funny because Sierra's the one who has hardly called me."

"Have you called her?" Connie inquired, in a "you know it works both ways" type of tone.

"No, but she has a boyfriend and school and work."

"Mitchie, you know that still isn't a very good excuse. You need to call her. You should go to that concert. You'll need a break from Caitlyn and Abigail by then."

"I'll think about it."

Mitchie and her mother continued to work until the lunch bell rang. Mitchie said goodbye to her mom and joined Caitlyn in the mess hall.

"Hey," Mitchie said as she sat down.

"Hey," Caitlyn responded sounding bummed.

"What's wrong?"

"I forgot how much I hated a foreign language class until yesterday."

"And that's a problem now because?"

"We have Spanish next period."

"Right, well, let's not think about that. Let's think about the fact that I got invited to a Connect 3 concert and I don't know if I want to go."

"Why wouldn't you go? You are going to be dating Shane soon and you don't even want to go to his concert?"

"No, it's not that at all..."

"You got offered tickets by Connect 3 and you are turning them down."

"NO!" Mitchie was getting upset that Caitlyn did not understand.

"Ok, ok. Don't have a horse."

"I got offered the tickets by a friend from back home," Mitchie explained.

"Sierra."

"Yea, and they don't include any back stage or anything like that."

"Oh, so you would see Shane, Nate, and Jason, but you wouldn't be able to talk to them."

"Exactly. I think it would be weird to see them in the lime light now that I know them… Well, at least I know Shane and Nate."

Caitlyn nodded, seeing the dilemma as Abigail walked up.

"Hey guys, can I join you?"

"Hey Abby. Yea, take a seat," Mitchie answered.

Abigail sat down bringing her own problems with her. Apparently she had a health paper, an English paper and a French paper all due by Friday and it was only the first week of school.

"Don't worry life gets better," Caitlyn consoled, although she was not so sure herself.

The girls ate and talked about school and who seemed to have high hopes for music later in life. They talked about Rachel and how she was finally getting over Shane and about how she had decided to stay single. This made Abigail laugh because Rachel had not been single for years and Abigail could not picture her sister with out a guy. Mitchie and Caitlyn kept their mouths shut about the concert and teased Abigail about the guy who said hi to her when they had gone to get their food.

When the bell rang for lunch to be over, the girls got up and left the mess hall.

"See you guys later, good luck with the rest of your day," Abigail said turning in the direction of Mr. Demicon's classroom.

"Thanks. See you at dinner," Mitchie called after her as she dragged Caitlyn towards the foreign language classroom.

"Hola estudiantes de español," Mr. Dominguez greeted.

"Buenas tardes," Mitchie and Caitlyn answered back.

"Ándale a trabajar," Mr. Dominguez said.

Mitchie and Caitlyn went to their desks and began to work. Mitchie opened the browser on the computer and started the work for day two. The period was half over when a box popped up on her screen. It was an instant message from Caitlyn.

MixerD.: Can I quit now.

Mitchie shook her head and wrote back.

TheRealMissingPiece: No. Necesitamos entender español.

Caitlyn came back quickly.

MixerD.: But why? I can live without it. After I'm famous I can just hire a translator.

Mitchie laughed and closed the window.

_It must be hard for Caitlyn to pick up a new language from scratch. At least I grew up around the language and I am practically fluent in it already. It's like teaching English to a person who grew up in Chicago._

Caitlyn was quite bored in the class and continued to open chat sessions with Mitchie though out the rest of class.

MixerD.: u should go 2 the concert.

TheRealMissingPiece: y there would b no point if I don't get 2 c Shane.

MixerD.: I talked to Nate and he said that he could upgrade Sierra's tickets without her even knowing if she's picking them up at the door.

TheRealMissingPiece: U TALKED 2 NATE ABOUT THIS! Caitlyn! This was supposed 2 stay between us.

MixerD.: Sorry but he said he wouldn't tell Shane and it's not like it matters if u can't c them NEway.

Mitchie closed the box out of frustration. She continued to work for the remaining fifteen minutes of class and left the room when the bell rang, leaving Caitlyn behind. She pulled out her phone and texted Nate.

_Nate-_

_I'm not sure wat Caitlyn told u exactly, but I'm not sure if I'm coming 2 the concert that she told u abt. If I could go would I b able to c u guys?_

_Mitchie_

Almost instantly there was a response.

_Mitchie-_

_Yes you should come. Shane is dying 2 c u and Jason and I miss u 2._

_-Nate_

With that being said Mitchie made her decision. She was going to the concert. She texted Nate saying she would be there. Then she texted Sierra.

_Sierra-_

_Guess whose coming 2 the concert? Me!_

_-Mitchie_

She knew Sierra would not text back, but at least she had made her decision.

* * *

**What did you think? Good, bad, ugly? Leave a comment and let me know if I'm loosing my touch. Thanks for the comments. They make my day and the longer they are the better!**


	24. Jommy and Lisa in the Morning

**HAPPY EASTER! I hope your's went better than mine. Songs by the Jonas Brothers, Taylor Swift and Superchic[k]. I hope you like it.**

* * *

LAST TIME

With that being said Mitchie made her decision. She was going to the concert. She texted Nate saying she would be there. Then she texted Sierra.

_Sierra-_

_Guess whose coming 2 the concert? Me!_

_-Mitchie_

She knew Sierra would not text back, but at least she had made her decision.

* * *

**NOW**

"Ok, time for lock down," George said, ushering the boys into the dressing room for their final warm up.

Nate pulled out his phone and texted someone and put it back into his pocket. Shane looked at him funny but then shrugged it off, outwardly at least.

_Who is Nate texting? He's normally so focused before a show. He's been slightly out of it since Monday. What's up with him?_

The boys started their vocal warm ups, as usual and then went through the beginning of each song. After that was done, George opened the door and led them to the stage.

_That's weird, what's with all the cameras back stage? George didn't say we had an interview or anything._

The cheering grew louder as TJ Tyler introduced the boys. They ran on stage and began to sing.

_Turn on that radio, as loud as it can go. Wanna dance until my feet can't feel the ground. Say goodbye to all my fears, one good song and they disappear, and nothing in the world can bring me down._

Hand clapping, hip shaking, heart breaking. There's no faking, what you feel, when you're right at home, yeah.

Music's in my soul, I can hear it, every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go, no, no. I just want to play my music. Woo.

Got my six string on my back, don't need anything but that. Everything I want is here with me. So forget that fancy car, I don't need to go that far. What's driving me is following my dreams, yeah.

Hand clapping, hip shaking, heart breaking. There's no faking, what you feel, when you're on a roll, yeah.

_Music's in my soul, I can hear it, every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go, no, no._

I just want to play my music; I just want to play my music.

Can't imagine what it'd be like, without the sounds of all my heroes, singing all my favorite songs. So I can sing along.

_  
Music's in my soul, I can hear it, every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go, no, no. I just want to play my music._

Music's in my soul, I can hear it, every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go, no, no. I just want to play my music,  
All night long.

"I want to dedicate this next song to a good friend of mine who helped me this summer," Shane said into the microphone to introduce the next song, "She taught me a lot about myself and helped me though a tough time."

The stage hands brought out a stool and Shane sat down. Nate and Jason backed off the sides of him. He started to strum and his head went to the source of the music.

He thought about Mitchie.

_Every time I think I'm closer to the heart, of what it means to know just who I am. I think I finally found a better place to start. No one ever seems to understand, I need to try to get to where you are. Could it be you're not that far?_

_**I can't believe that she's into me. **_

_  
You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing, I need to find you, gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me, I need to find you,  
I gotta find you. Oh yeah, yeah_

_**I have screwed up so much and she still cares about me. **_

_  
You're the remedy I'm searching hard to find, to fix the puzzle that I see inside. Painting all my dreams the color of your smile, when I find you it will be alright. I need to try to get to where you are. Could it be you're not that far?_

_  
__**I don't like waiting for her, but she did so much for me this summer I owe it to her to be patient.**_

You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing, I need to find you, gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me, I need to find you,  
I gotta find you.

_**Who texted Nate? Was it Mitchie? Maybe Mitchie's not as into me as I thought.**_

Been feeling lost, can't find the words to say. Spending all my time stuck in yesterday, Cause' where you are, is where I wanna be, next to you, you next to me. Oh, I need to find you, Yeah.

_**Is Mitchie falling for Nate?**_

_**No, she wouldn't. I love her…I broke up with Rachel for her…**_

You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you (need to find you), gotta find you (yeah). You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, gotta find you (I gotta find you).

_**I would have broken up with Rachel anyway, but Mitchie, she changed me and I would give the world for her.**_

You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you (need to find you), gotta find you (yeah). You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, gotta find you (I gotta find you). Yeah, gotta find you.

The crowd cheered as Connect 3 played the rest of their set and left the stage.

"Great show," Tess said coming up to give Shane a huge in front of the cameras.

"Thanks, Tess," Shane said, slightly uncomfortable, "I gotta go change. I'll catch up with you later. Dinner?"

Tess nodded with a smile on her face.

_I hope she knows that dinner is with all the guys not just me._

"Great job guys," George said coming into the dressing room, "I know you're all tired and just want to go to dinner and bed, but I want to go over tomorrow's schedule while you are all together."

"Tomorrow you'll be in Florida working on your music video for 'Gotta Find You.' I thought about what you said Shane, and I was thinking that maybe we could set up a fake Camp Rock or find another lake to film by so you have the feeling of Camp Rock.

"You have your interview on Jommy and Lisa in the Morning. You will be singing one song there and then you have a Disney World concert that night in front of the castle.

"TJ will be on Jommy and Lisa in the Morning with you too. She'll be talking with them about having her daughter on the road. With magazines talking about Tess and Shane, I think it would be a good idea if Shane really made it public tomorrow."

Shane gave George a look, but George missed it. He turned to the guys with a look of annoyance on his face.

"One more thing, you do get to ride the coasters tomorrow, but you will be filmed during it. It will be part of your video so no Space Mountain, Shane."

Shane nodded, not understanding why he had been addressed personally with this concern.

Nate seemed to understand and pulled out his phone again.

_Who could he possibly be texting? Mitchie? Again? What the heck is going on?_

Shane pulled out his cell phone too. At this point George got frustrated and left. No one was paying any attention anyway, as Jason had found a fan gift and was busy examining an awesome tye-dye bird house.

Shane texted Mitchie.

_Mitchie-_

_I no ur probably asleep right now, so I don't expect u 2 text back, but I wanted 2 tell u that I'll be on Jommy and Lisa 2morrow w/ the guys and Tess. Sorry that this is the way it is right now._

_-Shane_

He really wanted to ask her about his worries with Nate, but he could not bring himself to do it. He wanted her to know he trusted her even if she did not trust him.

'_I could tell you his favorite color's green; he loves to argue, born on the seventeenth. His sister's beautiful, he has his father's eyes, and if you asked me if I love him, I'd lie.'_

"Hello?" Shane asked picking up the phone.

_Hey, Shane, listen, I know you and I are over…just please tell me who she is._

"No, Rachel. It's not your business… she doesn't want people to know, you can find out with the rest of the world tomorrow."

_What's tomorrow? An interview?_

"Yes," Shane sighed out.

_Aw, come on, Shane, it's only one day and I'm over you… I promise._

Shane laughed shakily. His phone beeped telling him someone else was calling.

"Listen, I got to go. You have to teach tomorrow anyway, right? So you shouldn't even be calling me. I broke up with you and you say you're over me, but how can you be when you are calling me at eleven at night when you have work tomorrow. No, I don't believe you and until you are really over me you're out of my life."

Shane hung up the phone with a snap.

'_Rock what you got, rock what you got, don't ever let them make you stop. Rock what you got, light up the lot, no one can rock the way you rock.'_

"Mitchie?"

_Hey Shane._

"Did I wake you with my text?"

_Nope. I was helping Caitlyn with homework, but she's obviously too distracted. Some guy or something._

"Hmm…hey have you been texting Nate lately?"

_Yea. I talked to him today actually._

Shane tensed up.

"Ok, I have to ask. You said that you were going to see me soon. What did you mean?"

_Um… I… heard you were going to be on the Jommy and Lisa show and I can't wait to see it. My mom has a TV set up in the kitchen and I'm gonna watch it live while we make breakfast tomorrow._

"Oh," Shane said, feeling let down, "I forgot to tell you, I'm trying to get part of our new music video filmed at camp, but my manager doesn't get it… I want to see you…"

_I know, Shane. Winter break will be here before you know it and then we can see each other until you head back to tour. We'll see each other sooner than you think._

"Ok. Well, I should let you go; Tess is waiting for me to go to dinner."

_Oh._

"Mitchie you know it's not like that."

_I know... it's just weird…_

"I could end it," Shane said, really begging more than offering.

_No. The press is already all over you for breaking up with Rachel it's better that you have Tess to explain it. If you break up with Tess without a press explanation, then they will start digging._

"Fine. I'll call you if George budges on the music video issue."

_Ok, Shane. I'll talk to you later, Caitlyn has finally put her cell phone away so I can help her finish and go to bed._

"Good night Mitchie. Text me."

Mitchie laughed on the other line and hung up.

"Shane, you ready man?" Jason asked, noticing he was off the phone.

"Yea."

Shane followed Jason out of the dressing room.

_That's funny; I don't remember Nate leaving us here. Where did he go?_

The boys rounded the corner to see Nate and Tess waiting for them.

Tess had changed as well and looked as though she were ready to go clubbing or out to a fancier dinner this was completely different than Shane had originally thought.

"Where do you guys want to go?" Nate asked putting away his cell phone after checking the time.

"What's open?" Shane asked.

"Oh, there's a club just up the road from the hotel that looked interesting," Tess commented.

"I want pancakes," Jason shouted out.

Everyone looked at him as if he was crazy.

"Pancakes? At eleven o'clock at night?" Nate inquired.

"Yea, we passed a Baker's Square and ever since I've wanted pancakes."

"Jason, the chances of Baker's Square being open this late are slim to none," Tess explained kindly.

"I don't want to go to a club," Shane stated.

"Why not?" Tess asked looking dejected.

"It's too public and if we went we would be there all night and Nate's too young."

Nate looked at Shane like he was crazy. It did not matter how old Nate was, he was famous and it would not be the first time he went to a club with Shane and Jason. Then Shane gave him a look that said, "I don't want to be in the public eye with Tess."

"Yea, I can't go in until next year. Sorry Tess."

"It's ok. Ok, Jason, if you can find an open Baker's Square, I guess we can go there."

Jason jumped up and down cheering for a few minutes before running off to find George to get the bus ready for leaving for dinner.

"So, have you talked to Mitchie lately?" Shane asked the public at large.

"Nope, not since yesterday," Tess replied, looking to Nate.

"Same here and it was a text message."

Shane nodded knowing that he was lying but not wanting to push the issue.

* * *

'_Sometimes I have good days and it's good to be me, sometimes I get the best of insecurity. And it's quite alright to be the one and only, but today I feel like the one and lonely'_

"Sierra? What are you doing up this late? Do you have school tomorrow?"

_Hey Mitchie. I'm great thanks for asking._

"Sorry, but what's with the late night phone call?"

"_I just got home from a late night study session with John."_

"Oh. How's it going with you two?"

_Good, good. It was kinda weird being in your house without you being there though._

Mitchie laughed.

"Yea, I'm sure that is kinda weird."

_Sorry to call so late. It's just that I just got your text._

"Oh, I sent that at two and you just got it?"

_My phone was off until I got to John's after school and then I couldn't call because I was with him._

"I see. Anyways, I'm coming. Maybe you can meet Shane."

_Our tickets aren't that great Mitchie. I tried really hard to get good tickets, but they were expensive and I figured you would be bringing someone…_

"What do you mean? I thought it would just be the two of us like old times."

Sierra laughed slightly on the other line in a worried way.

_I kinda bought four tickets because John wanted to go and I didn't think you'd mind._

"Oh."

_I can sell the tickets and we can go just the two of us if you want, but I really thought you would be ok with this._

"No, it's fine. I'll just bring some one from camp."

_Are you sure? I can always sell the tickets. They sold out really fast and I could turn around and sell them at school._

"No… maybe Caitlyn would want to go."

"What?" Caitlyn asked looking up from her math book.

"Do you want to go see Connect 3 with my best friend from home, her boyfriend and I?"

"I thought the point was for us to have a weekend without each other because we are together constantly, but I'll call Nate and work it out."

"Oh, don't do that. If you call then he's gonna want to know why it jumped from two to four. I'll text him tomorrow."

_What's going on? All I got was something about two to four. Can she come?_

"Yea, she's excited. I was helping her with… a math problem. You'll love Caitlyn when you meet her."

_I can't wait. Is she coming to your house on Sunday? I'm coming down remember?_

"Yea. Of course I remember. I don't think she's going to be there, but I want you to see my home too."

_Yea. That's where I'm going. Your house where you and your family live._

"Sierra, I don't live in my house."

_What? I know you are at the camp pretty much twenty four-seven, but you don't live there…do you?_

"Yes, Sierra. My home is at the camp."

_Oh._

"Well I got to go. We'll catch up next weekend when you're here."

_Ok. Bye Mitchie._

Mitchie hung up the phone and turned to help Caitlyn with her homework to find her asleep on the book. Mitchie shook her head and took out the spray bottle from the first day back at camp.

She sprayed Caitlyn in the back of the head and Caitlyn popped up.

"What? I'm done right?"

"You've barley started," Mitchie said.

Caitlyn groaned, "I dreamt I finished it and didn't even need your help. I also dreamed that we had tickets to the Connect 3 concert. Now my hopes are lost… I wanted to see N-Shane. He was a great dance teacher and I wanted to see him."

"Nope, that part was real. Come on Sleeping Beauty; let's get this done so we can go to sleep."

* * *

"Welcome to Jommy and Lisa in the Morning. Here are your hosts, Jommy and Lisa."

"Welcome to the show," Lisa started off, "We have an amazing show planned for you all today."

"That's right," Jommy answered, "We have TJ Tyler and her daughter Tess and we also have Jason, Shane and Nate of the hit band Connect 3."

The crowd cheered.

"Please welcome TJ and her daughter Tess," Lisa said, as the studio audience abounded in applause.

The hosts stood up and quickly gave hugs to TJ and Tess before the four took their seats.

"Good morning," Lisa started.

"Good morning," TJ answered.

"So we hear you are opening for the biggest teen phenomena Connect 3. How is the tour going so far?" Jommy asked.

"It's going great so far. We've done two shows so far and it seems to be better than any other tour we have ever done."

Tess nodded with this, but from back stage the boys could tell she was just acting.

_What's with Tess? Isn't she happy to be on tour with us? She was ecstatic three days ago when we started._

"Tess, what is the best part of being on the road with your mom?" Lisa inquired.

"Um… I think the best part is that I'm able to spend time with her instead of being shipped off to a boarding school where I only get to talk to her on the phone once a week. The intensity of being on tour and being able to talk to her at any time is probably the best part."

"What about you?" Lisa asked TJ.

"I think it's having a support system behind me. When Tess's father died it was hard on both of us, and it was the end of family tours. When Tess decided to go on the road with me it made me want to go out on stage again to make her proud to be my daughter."

TJ leaned over and gave Tess a one armed hug.

"Tess, being around all these amazing singers, are you planning on doing anything musically later?"

"Actually, Jommy, Tess attended Camp Rock this summer. She worked with Shane Gray and a lot of other talented people to work on her singing career."

Tess nodded, but it was obvious that she was upset that her mother had taken her question.

The interview went on for a few more minutes asking TJ about her new CD and what she liked best about working with a younger band like Connect 3.

When the interview finally ended, Tess came back stage and heaved a big sigh. Sensing tears coming, Shane went up to her and asked her what was wrong.

She shook her head and headed for her mother's dressing room.

"And we're back. Please welcome our next guests Connect 3."

Jason led the boys as they ran out onto the stage, waving at the audience.

"Hello, guys," Jommy said hugging each of them, followed by a hug from Lisa.

They all sat down and got to the questions.

"So, you guys are on the road again."

"Yea, it's about time," Jason commented.

"What happened," Jommy asked, "You guys had a summer tour all planned and you were sold out too."

"Something came up and I had to go visit my uncle," Shane explained.

"Where is your uncle located?" Lisa asked, very interested.

"He lives in Arkansas. He runs a camp out there for aspiring musicians called Camp Rock. He was short staffed so I taught a hip hop class there this summer."

"Did you guys go with?" Jommy asked Nate and Jason.

"Not the whole time," Nate answered honestly.

"We came up to judge the final talent show and jam out with Shane about half way through camp," Jason explained.

"So, Shane. You were at a camp for developing musicians; was there any developing love interests there?"

Shane lightly blushed before answering.

"Yea, there was. She's actually here today," Shane struggled out.

_George wanted this public I just hope Mitchie doesn't hate me._

"Oh, well, let's bring her out," Lisa said.

Tess came out onto the stage. Everyone stood up as she walked over.

She walked strait up to Shane gave him a hug and before he could stop her or even figure out what she was doing she leaned in and kissed him.

_What is she doing? Oh, this can't be good._

Shane pushed away but it was too late. He had to finish the interview.

The two sat down and Shane tried to pretend that what had just happened was nothing out of the usual.

* * *

"Ahhh!" not one but to girl screamed across the camp.

_How could he do that? I trusted him. He promised he would wait for me. What if it was Tess's fault? I trusted her. That little trickster, I should have known she hadn't changed. Not one bit._

Mitchie burst into tears and Caitlyn ran over to her side where she had been cutting oranges for breakfast.

"Relax Mitchie, it probably wasn't his fault. She's an idiot and she has never been anything but a jerk to you. She probably did it to get attention."

Mitchie was breathing really hard now.

_How could he…he promised._

Across camp, something similar was going on in a leader's cabin. Rachel was throwing a fit. She could not stand the fact that not only did he break up with her, but he broke up with her for a jerk like Tess. She would have been ok if it was one of her students, maybe even happy if it was some one like Mitchie, but Tess?

* * *

**Oh...My...Gosh...what's gonna happen next??? I don't know and you don't either. Oh, wait... I do... hahaha you have to wait until the next chapter to find out. Please Review like crazy it always brightens my day.**


	25. What's Your Problem?

**Hey guys sorry about the late chapter. I know, not my normal Sunday update, but I've been busy with testing for school and an English paper that had to be five pages long! Anywho, I hope you like this long awaited chapter. The songs are by Kelli Lynn and the Beatles.

* * *

**

LAST TIME

Mitchie was breathing really hard now.

_How could he…he promised._

Across camp, something similar was going on in a leader's cabin. Rachel was throwing a fit. She could not stand the fact that not only did he break up with her, but he broke up with her for a jerk like Tess. She would have been ok if it was one of her students, maybe even happy if it was some one like Mitchie, but Tess?

**NOW**

'_Everything is different, why do things change? I'm still standing here, but you've walked away. Everything is nothing now that I see, everything we are is everything we're gonna be.'_

Mitchie pressed ignore on her phone as she headed to her first class with Caitlyn and Amy. Caitlyn had been able to clean Mitchie up before her first class, but Mitchie was still upset on the inside.

'_Everything is different, why do things change? I'm still standing here, but you've walked away. Everything is nothing now that I see, everything we are is everything we're gonna be.'_

"Huh, give it up!" Mitchie said, pressing ignore of the third time.

"At least he's trying, Mitchie," Caitlyn tried to sound supportive.

"He obviously wasn't trying too hard if he could kiss her in front of the entire United States this morning," Mitchie stated, frazzled.

Caitlyn sighed and gave up.

"So, what do you think about Shane Gray's new girl friend?" Amy asked, trying to change the subject.

_Really, that is exactly my problem and you are going to talk about it now! I need to get away from people who are talking about Shane…_

"Ahhh!" Mitchie screamed, frustrated, and ran in the direction of the dance studio.

The faster she got there the faster she could blow off some steam without hurting anything or anyone.

'_Everything is different, why do things change? I'm still standing here, but you've walked away. Everything is nothing now that I see, everything we are is everything we're gonna be.'_

Mitchie pressed ignore yet again. She was about to turn off her phone when another ringtone came out of it.

'_You say goodbye and I say hello, hello hello. I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello. Hello hello, I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello'_

"Hello?"

_Hey Mitchie, It's Nate._

"Hey, listen, I don't want to talk about it right now and I have a class to get to. Tell Shane to stop calling and leave me alone."

_But Mitchie…_

"Oh and congratulate him on the new girlfriend. She seemed pretty happy to have him."

_Mitchie!_

"Nate, I said I didn't want to talk about it."

_But I need to tell you something. It's important..._

"What is so important that it can't wait until I'm ready to talk about this?"

_I can't tell Shane anything you just told me to tell him because…he ran away…he was so upset with what Tess did that after the show he wouldn't come out of the dressing room for five minutes. I told him to call you and after you didn't answer his phone call, he grabbed a cab and left._

"W-what?" Mitchie stuttered.

_I have a feeling he's on his way to Arkansas. Please, just talk to him…you can break his heart later if you really have to, I just can't deal with the publicity of him going back to his old ways…_

"Wait… he really locked himself in the dressing room?"

_Yes. Did you watch the rest of the interview?_

"Yea, he looked fine."

_He didn't even sit next to her. I think he would have strangled her if he did. Do you really think he would kiss Tess? On purpose?_

"No, I guess not…it's just… it's hard to know that he could be in a relationship and I wouldn't even know it."

_Listen, if anything was going on I would call you and you would be the first to know after me. Ok? Does that make it any better?_

"I guess."

_Good to hear I could help… now help me out and call Shane? He could be on a plane by now._

"How bad would it be if he came down to apologize in person?"

_Mitchie!_

"Ok, fine. I'll call him, but I'm not making any promises to forgive him."

_That's all I ask. Thank you Mitchie. Bye._

Mitchie hung up the phone and unwillingly dialed Shane's number. It rang once and Shane picked up

_Mitchie, I'm soooooo sorry._

"Where are you?"

_Miami airport. I really need to talk to you. I'm coming to Arkansas to see you. I screwed up. I should have never trusted Tess._

Mitchie could hear people in the terminal with Shane. It was odd, but no one seemed to know it was him. _Flight 205 now boarding to Little Rock, Arkansas._

"Go back to Nate and Jason."

_No, Mitchie, we need to talk…I need to end it with Tess, that's obvious, and it's already done. I told her never to come near me again. I'm done with this double life thing._

"We can talk when you come for Thanksgiving. I have to get to class and you need to go back to Jason and N… You really did that?"

_Yes, and I'm coming to visit you no matter what you say. I'm getting on the plane right now and I'll be there in about three hours._

"But, what are you going to do about your concert tonight?"

Shane was silent for a second.

"You still there? I'm gonna hang up and you are going to go back to the studio."

_I guess I am…but I really do owe you a giant apology in person._

"That can wait. I agree with you but…it can wait."

_Ok…I'll get off the plane but only for the fans._

"Ok, you keep telling yourself that."

_I'll call you later._

Mitchie closed her phone. Frustrated with the whole situation, she headed into the dance room.

"Good Morning Mitchie," Mrs. Catsing greeted.

Mitchie smiled in return. As usual Mitchie was the first one in the room. Normally Caitlyn and Amy were with her, but today she was alone.

"What are we doing today?" Mitchie asked, hoping for a fun hip hop class to get her mind off Shane.

"We're going for a run around camp," Mrs. Catsing answered, "I figured it would be a good way to get exercise and enjoy the heat while we have it."

Mitchie groaned internally.

_I hate running! It's the worst exercise known to man…maybe I can run with Caitlyn. I should probably tell Nate that Shane decided to stay._

Mitchie opened her cell phone as Caitlyn and Amy came into the room with Barron.

_Nate-_

_He's coming back ur way._

_-Mitchie_

She put her phone away as they approached.

"You ok?" Barron asked.

Mitchie simply nodded.

"Sorry about earlier, I was just trying to make you feel better by changing the subject," Amy said, looking guilty.

"It's fine," Mitchie replied, "It's just the guy that I was upset about is a lot like Shane Gray. He talks and acts like him. I even took to calling him Shane awhile back."

Barron just stared at Mitchie, amazed that she could lie so well. Even after her giant lie to the whole camp this summer it still amazed him that she could lie with so much confidence. He knew that there was something there at the end of the summer between her and Shane. It was quite obvious considering the lunch fiasco on Sunday.

"So, what are we doing today?" Caitlyn asked, changing the subject.

"Apparently, Mrs. Catsing is having us run the trails around camp."

"That sounds…fun…" Amy trailed off, "I used to run track at my old school. Most of my friends were runners but when I tried out for the musical last spring instead of going out for track, I lost them all."

"I'm sorry," Mitchie commented.

"It's cool. The girls that were in the play with me told me about Camp Rock because they had friends from their theater club that were planning on coming this passed summer.

"I was interested so they got me the information, but it was too much for just one summer of camp so my parents originally said no.

"Then my dad got transferred though his job position to Japan so my parents didn't want to make me start over in a different country. They were going to send me to boarding school, but then I heard about Camp Rock High from the theater crowd. My parents looked into it and I ended up here instead and I have you guys and Peggy, Katie and Ella."

By this time the class had filed in and Mrs. Catsing was ready to start when the bell rang.

"Ok. Today we are going to do two laps around the lake, and then we are going to run through the leaders lodge, two more laps around the lake and then back here for stretches. Don't stop or your Saturday will be used to make it up as a detention.

"Macy spit out the gum and give me five push ups. When you are done we will start the run."

Everyone groaned and headed for the door. Mitchie and Caitlyn were the last one's to leave

"Run with me?" Caitlyn asked as the two reached the door.

"Sure."

Mrs. Catsing called for everyone to begin and lead the group in a golf cart. Mitchie and Caitlyn slowly fell to the back of the running bodies.

"So, you seem better than when I last saw you."

"Yea, I talked to Nate and he made me talk to Shane."

"Nate's good with this time of stuff."

"Yea. Shane was going to come down here and try to fix everything."

"Why did you stop him? Don't you think he kinda owes it to you?"

"Nate begged me to stop him from coming here because of the effect it would have on the band and the tour. I even told him that I was planning on not calling but Nate literally begged me."

"So what did you talk to Shane about?"

Mitchie explained the situation as they reached the lake and headed north around it. When the conversation was almost over, Caitlyn's phone vibrated and she pulled it out to look at the text.

"Who is that?" Mitchie asked.

"Nate. He says that he is going to owe you big time because Shane came back. He seemed a little miffed but hid it really well."

"So you seem to have been talking to Nate a lot lately. Anything you want to tell me about?"

Caitlyn smiled and shook her head as they rounded the side of the lake.

"Then what's up? You have been some where else for the last two days."

"Mitchie, you know I like him and he's a great guy to talk to. He gave me a couple pointers on Spanish that he got from Tess and he has been asking me about some of the more behind the scenes stuff in music because he wants to take up producing too."

Mitchie nodded.

_That makes sense but I think that there is something she's not telling me._

The girls ran for a couple minutes in silence.

'_Look at you, look at me. There's never any us. Can't you see all we can become? We can shine like the sun, if we believe that two stars are brighter than one. Come on, come on, come on, look at you. Come on, come on, come on, look at me.'_

Mitchie looked at the caller id on the phone. Her face went stony and she handed it to Caitlyn.

"Who is it?" Caitlyn asked taking the phone from Mitchie.

"Tess."

"Oh, I know what to do."

Caitlyn took the call with great excitement. She was one of those people who got a thrill out of helping friends out and supporting them.

"Tess… No, she's not in the talking mood right now… mhm ok so you say you're sorry but you kissed him. I'm sorry I don't believe you and I'm sure Mitchie won't either… I don't even know why she would trust you with this. You guys aren't friends but she gave you a chance. That's more than I would give you…fine… Bye."

Caitlyn ended the call and handed the phone back to Mitchie.

_Way to bring it on her Caitlyn!_

"So, what did she want?" Mitchie asked.

"She wanted to talk to you, I said no. She said she was sorry, but how could she be?"

"I know. She says she is sorry for being a jerk to me, and then she and I start to trust each other-"

"Wait…you trust her? Since when have you been friends?"

"I she got my number off of Ella after Final Jam and called me on Tuesday to say she was sorry. She also said that she had given up on Shane because she saw the way he looked at me and how I had changed him. I still don't see it, but everyone else seems to think I did something."

"You did change him, but back to the point. Just like that you forgave her?"

"Yea, but it's obvious I made the wrong choice now," Mitchie sighed as she rounded the bend of the lake.

"Don't be too sure."

"What do you mean? I thought you were on my side."

"I am, I am, but what if she was forced or something?"

"Tess wasn't forced to do anything, Caitlyn. Tess is very close-minded I don't think anyone could make Tess do anything unless she got something out of it."

"A kiss from the hottest pop-star out there, popularity, and exposure, I think she got something out of it for sure."

"Maybe you're right, but I'm never going to find out. It's over between me and her. Shane even kicked her to the curb."

"Well, that's fine. You don't need her in your life. You have me and Shane and Nate and Jason and everyone here at camp."

"Yep. You're absolutely right."

The girls continued to run until the bell rang through out the camp. Little did they know that a famous country singer had first period free and had decided to go for a swim. She had not heard everything, but she had heard enough.

Shane closed and headed out of the airport in his ridiculous disguise of a hooded sweatshirt and sun glasses. The people around him had given him funny looks about a sweatshirt in Florida with ninety degree weather, but no one had discovered who he was.

_Why am I listening to Mitchie? This is so ridiculous! I should be headed to her. I should be listening to my heart. Oh, wait…she holds my heart and it's with her in Arkansas, making it hard for me not to listen to her._

_She's still mad at me. I can't believe I let this happen. What was I thinking? I went along with this whole scheme, heck, I created it. Tess is an idiot. Why would she try to kiss me? She knows I lo-like Mitchie._

_Get a hold of yourself, Shane! You don't love her! You don't know her well enough to love her._

Shane hailed a cab and got in. After he told the driver where to go, he pulled out his phone and called Nate.

_Shane! Where are you? Please don't tell me you're on a plane._

"You can thank Mitchie that I'm not. She's still mad at me though."

_Does that mean you're on your way back?_

"Can't let you and Jason down and the fans wouldn't be too happy either. You know I hate disappointing them."

_Since when? Since you met Mitchie…man that girl is the best thing that's ever happened to this band, and she's not even in it._

"Take it easy. I changed because of her, but she did not change me. I changed me as a result of her… ok so maybe she did, but it's a change for the better, right?"

_Definitely. Oh, meet us at the Disney Hotel. George will meet you by the entrance so that you can get in._

"Ok. Just George though. If I get within twenty feet of Tess…"

_I get it. Yea, but she's pretty upset._

"And I'm not? Dude, who's side are you on?"

_Yours and Mitchie's._

"So why do you care?"

_She did help you out you know. She may have screwed up but she has been helpful too._

"Nate, you aren't really expecting me to forgive her are you?"

_Well…_

"No. I'm not going there, not now, not when I'm lying on my death bed."

_Whoa, a little dramatic? All I'm saying is that you need to be civil with her at least until Thanksgiving. She's heading out to boarding school after that._

"We'll see how I feel later. Right now it's not even within comprehension to be nice to her. I'll be there in ten minutes, bye."

Shane hung up the phone slightly sick of the conversation. He spent the next ten minutes looking out the window thinking.

"Mitchie concentrate. What happened to the girl who was so into her music? You don't seem dedicated to improvement."

"Sorry," Mitchie sighed.

"It's alright. Take it from the top again," Brown said and began Mitchie's track for _This Is Me._

_I've always been the kind of girl, that hid my face. So afraid to tell the world, what I've got to say. But I have this dream, right inside of me. I'm gonna let it show. It's time, to let you know…to let you know…This is real, this is me, this is exactly where I'm supposed to be now. Gonna let the-_

The music stopped and so did Mitchie.

"Mitchie what's going on? Your heart isn't in it today."

"Sorry, it's a whole bunch of drama."

"Is something wrong with your cabin?"

"No. It's something wrong outside of camp, with friends there."

"I'm going to take a guess that it has something to do with my nephew and his new girl friend."

"Why would it have something to do with that?" Mitchie asked nervously.

_How much does he know? Did Shane tell him?_

"You and he got close this summer. I don't exactly know what happened but there was tension after camp. Then all of a sudden he breaks up with Rachel and starts dating a girl that not even his parents approve of."

"Yea, that's it. I just thought that he would have been smart enough to date someone with a little…I don't know, substance?"

"He's a smart guy, but everyone dates a dud once and awhile. Now, what has got you so flustered? You and I need to get something accomplished today or you will have to do it after today's lessons."

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Well, as the uncle of the subject at hand I do. If it's easier you can sing it out."

Mitchie nodded. The words just came to her naturally.

_You thought I would be desperate, Keep saying your right fit,_

_That I wouldn't be mad, that I would call you back._

_You said tomorrow'd be okay, but tomorrow is today,_

_And we're so far from fine, we finally run out of time._

_You said I wouldn't know better, But I'm burning all your letters,_

_I don't want the memories; they don't mean a thing to me._

_I've put up with you enough, to realize there's better ones,_

_Out there, somewhere._

_So I'm saying good-bye to you, Good luck find finding somewhere who,_

_Will deal you and all your lies, Three months ago should've been goodbye._

_Don't tell me that goodbye hurts, Cause for you I'm hoping the worst,_

_I've never been through this before, and I thought I'd be harder but here I am walking out the door._

"That was amazing Love," Brown commented, "That's the type of passion I'm looking for. Now, I understand too. You have feelings for my nephew."

Mitchie nodded sadly.

"He and I like each other and after this morning…"

"You saw the interview?"

"Yes."

"He looked livid. Only people that have known him for years would know it, but he was really angry with Tess Tyler.

"I guess he fooled all of us. I really believed they were together until this morning. I'm glad it's not true but now I'm confused because you don't seem too surprised that it was a fake romance."

Mitchie looked down at her feet as she explained that Shane had faked the romance for the benefit of a lie he had told Rachel and that she and Tess had an agreement that if Tess did not do anything really physical with Shane that it would be ok for them to "date." She left out the part that she and Shane had a mutual agreement. Brown could have easily enough figured it out if he wanted to, but Mitchie did not really want to tell people about it.

The bell rang and Mitchie looked up.

"Alright, class dismissed."

"We didn't even get the song recorded; do you want me to come back after my last class?"

"Don't worry about it. I recorded your improvisation piece and it will be a nice contrast to your other songs."

Mitchie smiled and said goodbye to Brown as she headed off to the mess hall.

* * *

**So? What did you think? I really need imput on this chapter because I'm loosing momentum. What do you want to read???? Thanks for all the reviews!**


	26. Guess Who

**Hey everyone! I'm sooo happy I got this chapter done! ok so the songs are from the movie except the ringtones but I already told you about those.

* * *

**

LAST TIME

"We didn't even get the song recorded; do you want me to come back after my last class?"

"Don't worry about it. I recorded your improvisation piece and it will be a nice contrast to your other songs."

Mitchie smiled and said goodbye to Brown as she headed off to the mess hall.

**NOW**

"Mitchie, can you hand me that box of pepperoni?"

"Wow, pizza for lunch? You really went all out," Mitchie said, handing her mom the indicated box.

"No, this is for dinner. I have to get a head start because I need to go shopping for more supplies today."

"So what can I do to help?"

"Lunch is baked chicken, if you want to season it and put it in the oven that would be a big help."

Mitchie nodded and did as she was told. She was just finishing up when Rachel came in.

"Hey Rachel, how can I help you?" Mrs. Torres greeted.

"I was wondering if you had any wood polish I could borrow. I had inspiration on a song and now my guitar has lost its shiny quality."

"Sure."

Connie went into the dish room to find the polish leaving Rachel and Mitchie alone. Mitchie found the bag of potatoes and began to cut them while trying to start a conversation with Rachel.

"So what are we doing in guitar today?"

"Oh, just some basic cords. Actually, if you want to skip out on today's lesson that's fine with me."

"You don't want me to stick around and help today?"

"No, you can use the time to study. Actually, don't worry about it until Monday. Some people need a lot of help."

Mitchie was really confused. Rachel seemed really on edge when they had started talking.

_Did Abby say something? Did she over hear something?_

Connie came back into the kitchen with the polish. Rachel thanked her and left.

"Guess what mom."

"What?"

"I have an extra period off today. If you need me to help out here I can otherwise I'll use the time for homework or maybe e-mail Sierra or something."

"No, after these pizza's go in I'm covered. I'd take you to town with me but you have other classes and I will be gone for more than an hour.

"Is there anything you want while I'm in town? Magazines, stamps for letters to Sierra, stuff for a sleepover because you and I are both going to the house on Friday and Sierra is coming."

"I almost forgot she was coming down to see us. Um… how about a Pop Informer, some cheese puffs and a bottle of Coke. Oo and a pizza."

"Ok, sweetie.

"I'm done here and so you can go find Caitlyn; I'll finish up the potatoes."

"Really, thanks mom."

Mitchie kissed her mom on the cheek and left the kitchen.

* * *

The rest of the week flew by and before Mitchie knew it, she was sitting in Ms. Spray's music production class, her last class of the week.

"No homework tonight if you finish the packet you have in front of you."

Mitchie and Peggy were able to split the work and finish the packet half way though class. The teacher told them that since they were done they could leave and they used the rest of the time to hang out before Peggy's last lesson of the day.

"So, what are we doing in Guitar today?" Peggy asked, knowing Mitchie's schedule for after lunch by now.

"I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know? Didn't you have that class already?"

"Rachel said I didn't have to come to class until Monday. She said it was just basics so she didn't think she needed me around."

"Lucky, I've been playing guitar for ten years and she still is making me at least help out."

"That's strange…When I asked her if she wanted my help; she said she had it covered."

_Is there something going on that I'm not aware of? Is Rachel mad at me for some reason?_

"Well, just take it as a sign that she likes you. So, have you heard from C3 lately? I heard that they were on TV a couple of days ago."

"No, I haven't talked to them since Wednesday. Shane was freaking out about something and almost ran away from the tour; Nate freaked out because Shane freaked out and ended up calling me to call Shane to stop him from freaking out and go back to the tour."

"Wow. How far did he get before Nate called?"

"I stopped him as he was getting on the plane to come here."

"That must have been some interview. I can't wait until it gets to UTube."

"It was some interview. My mom let me watch it while we made breakfast."

"What happened?"

"Tess kissed Shane on National Television."

"Wow, Tess and Shane? I would never have seen that coming."

"Neither did I," Mitchie said dismissing the subject.

"Do you have any plans for the weekend? I hear that there is no jam tomorrow night so I thought I would rent a movie while Lola's in town and watch it Saturday night. Do you want to come?"

"Sorry, I have plans."

"Already? It's only the first week of school."

"My best friend from home is coming in to visit and…"

'_Sometimes I have good days and it's good to be me, sometimes I get the best of insecurity. And it's quite alright to be the one and only, but today I feel like the one and lonely'_

"Oh, it's her. I'll be right back."

Mitchie got up from her seat on the pier next to Peggy and answered the phone with a cheery "hello."

_Hey Mitchie!_

"What's up Sierra? I thought you would still be in school."

_We had an institute day…I know it's a little early for days off but we have it so my mom sent me down on an earlier train. Anyway, what's the Camp Rock address?"_

"Hang on I've got to ask some one."

Mitchie walked back over to Peggy.

"What's the address here?"

Peggy told her and Mitchie told Sierra.

_Ok…does it have a big sign out front that says Camp Rock on it?_

"Yes…" Mitchie answered confused.

_Can you get to that sign in about a minute from where you are?_

"If I run."

Mitchie began to head towards the sign with, now curious, Peggy slightly behind.

_Mitchie, I'm at the sign. Where are you?_

"You're here!? Oh my gosh! I'll be there in a second!"

Mitchie closed her phone and dashed for the sign that covered the main road in to the camp. There she saw a bright yellow taxi and in the back a curly top with glasses sticking out the window.

"Ahh" Mitchie screamed, "You're here!"

"I'm here!" Sierra yelled back with the same enthusiasm, opening her door and pulling out her bag to pay the driver.

When the driver had been paid, Sierra ran over to Mitchie and gave her a big hug.

"How has your week been? How are you? Are you enjoying being stuck in the wilderness? How's your cabin? Do you really know Rachel Anadeski? Can I meet her?"

"Sierra, relax. This is Peggy," Mitchie calmed and introduced.

"Peggy, this is Sierra. We've known each other forever."

"When she says forever she means forever," Sierra commented.

"Nice to meet you," Peggy said with a smile.

"So Mitchie, am I gonna sit here with all my stuff talking in the middle of a road all afternoon or are you going to show me around?" Sierra asked sarcastically.

Mitchie laughed and picked up the bag Sierra had discarded. She lead Peggy and Sierra towards the mess hall in search of her mom's catering van. There, they dropped Sierra's stuff and headed in to find Connie.

"Mom?" Mitchie called into the kitchen.

"What's up Mitchie? I have to get these subs done before we leave for home."

Sierra sunk up behind Mrs. Torres, her second mom and shouted, "Boo."

Connie jumped and turned around.

"Sierra, so nice to see you. I thought you weren't going to be here for a couple more hours. How did you get here? I was going to pick you up from the station on our way to the house tonight," Connie rambled, enveloping Sierra into a hug.

"Mom got me an earlier train because we didn't have school today," Sierra responded, hugging her back.

Just then the bell rang.

"Well, I got to go Mitchie. Have a good weekend, I'll see you Sunday night," Peggy called as she headed off to guitar lessons with Rachel.

"Bye," Mitchie called after her.

* * *

Shane walked back and forth in the tour bus for what had to be the hundredth time that day.

"Shane, you are going to where a whole in the floor if you keep walking back and forth. Could you stop? You are making me dizzy," Nate commented.

"Why hasn't she called? She's still mad at me right? Is that what it is?"

Nate let out a sigh.

"Chill. She said that her schedule at school was busy and she hasn't even texted me for the last couple days. She will talk to you when she gets the chance."

"You didn't hear how mad she was. What if she's holding a grudge on me? I didn't kiss her! She kissed me!"

"I think everyone on this bus is well aware of that fact," Jason said, turning his attention away from the birds outside and focusing on calming Shane down.

"Did you even ask Tess why she kissed you?" Nate asked.

"I told you and Jason that…"

"You will never speak to her again," Nate and Jason finished.

"Well, I have talked to her and you know what, it wasn't her fault either."

Shane gave Nate an inquisitive look.

* * *

Tess sat on the couch in her mom's tour bus in a depressed lump.

_I can't believe I did that. How could I be so stupid? It got me the publicity in wanted, but I just got friends… real friends, and Mitchie…Mitchie thought she could trust me. I can't believe I gave up what I have been trying to get all summer for my mom's attention. It didn't even work. She was off in her dressing room looking at herself in the mirror._

Tess felt the tears start to slide down her face. She dialed Peggy's number, and then hung up. Peggy did not know about the whole Shane and Mitchie situation. She finally decided to call the only person who had been decent enough to talk to her.

_Hang on I have to get away from a ranter._

_What's up?_

"I know I told you to tell him this before but I'm really, really sorry."

_I've told him, Jason's told him, his parents have even tried to convince him to talk to you…It's not working. Did you know he hasn't gotten a phone call from Mitchie since the day of the show?_

The tears multiplied.

"I-I didn't mean to."

_Tess, it's not your fault, but why did you do it?_

"My mom…"

_What about your mom? Did she make you do it? Did she say something to you?_

Tess could barely stand how sweet Nate was being, this only made the tears fall harder.

"I thought that if I had talent and won the Final Jam then she would care about me. I didn't win, but she let me come on her tour with you guys. When she didn't notice, I tried other things to get her attention. I thought that if I found some one like Shane to be my boyfriend, real or not that she would care about me or a least be protective of me. When that didn't work, I though myself at Shane in those pictures…I thought I had finally gotten her. She saw the pictures but said that it was photo shopped and moved on. Then George asked me to show affection to Shane when I got on stage for the interview…"

_So, you kissed him? You know you can show affection other ways. You could have hugged him or held his hand or kissed his cheek._

"George…he said that it should be more than what the tabloids had seen."

_Tess as much as I want to pin this on George, you were the one who did the kissing… you could have decided against it. Look how bad it back fired. You lost Mitchie and Shane. You almost lost Jason and me too. Shane hates me for talking to you. He thinks that this is Caitlyn._

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry I'm making you lie, I'm sorry I kissed Shane, I'm sorry that Mitchie saw it and I'm sorry that I can't take it back. I'm just really, really sorry."

Tess broke down again. There was no use trying to continue, she was lost in a pool of tears.

_Listen, Shane is starting to walk in a pace again and I have to figure out how to get Mitchie on the phone for him or he will wear a whole in the floor. I'll talk to you later._

Tess hung up the phone and curled up in the fetal position and let the silent tears roll down her cheeks until she fell into an uneasy sleep.

* * *

Nate waited for the line to go dead then dialed Mitchie's number. It rang three times but no answer.

_Hey this is Mitchie. I'm not here right now; leave a message after the beep…_

"Hey Mitchie, it's Nate. Um… just called to say hi see what's up and beg you to call Shane. He thinks you hate him and it's getting really annoying to watch him burn a hole in the carpet. Hope you caught my sarcasm there. Anyway, I'm sorry I missed you, I'll try to get you by Caitlyn."

Nate then dialed Caitlyn but remembered that she was still in a class for another hour and hung up.

When he returned to the group Shane was sitting on the couch with his MP3 player in and he was staring at the floor. Jason had pulled out a box of Happy-O's and looking at a book.

Nate shook his head and took a seat next to Shane, after grabbing his guitar. He secretly thought he never fell in love as bad as Shane, but why hadn't Caitlyn called this morning?

* * *

"This is the dock, where I spent most of my free time this summer," Mitchie explained to Sierra.

Sierra had wanted to see the camp in the light of Mitchie's summer. She could care less where her classes were or where the boys' cabins were versus the girls' cabins. She wanted to see where Mitchie had met Shane, where they had spent time together, what had happened with Tess and where, where Caitlyn had come into the mix, and all the other fun things Mitchie had talked about.

Sierra took a seat on the bench.

"This is where the actual Shane Gray played his actual guitar."

"Actually," Mitchie laughed, "I sat there; Shane sat a little more to the left."

Sierra got up and corrected her statement by moving over to the left. A bell rang though out the camp.

"What is that for? You don't have another class do you?"

"No, it's the last period bell for classes to be dismissed. They'll play music in about a half an hour for dinner and then there will be another one to signal study and quite time," Mitchie explained.

"Ok, so I've seen almost everything. I haven't met your roommates yet or seen your cabin. Can we go there?"

Mitchie nodded and lead her friend towards Melody cabin.

"Ta-da!" Mitchie announced as she opened the door and let Sierra into the cabin.

"Wow, this does not look like a cabin at all. The cabins at Science Camp were definitely not like this."

Abigail came rushing into the room.

"Hey, Mitchie… Some work… out today… huh? Running around… the lake… twice… in one… hour is crazy… and to…do… it… twice… this… week…"

Abigail collapsed on her bed without finishing her sentence.

"Abby, this is Sierra. Sierra, this is Abigail," Mitchie introduced.

"Hi," Abigail said, sitting up.

"Hello," Sierra answered back, smiling.

Just then Caitlyn came in with her phone out. Texting, again.

"Hey Mitchie, did you talk to your friend about me going to the concert with you?"

Sierra knew that she was talking about and answered before Mitchie could.

"Yes she did, Caitlyn," she answered, looking to Mitchie to be sure of the name.

Caitlyn looked up not recognizing the voice.

"Caitlyn, this is Sierra. Sierra, this is Caitlyn," Mitchie smiled seeing her two best friends in the same place together.

"Nice to finally meet you Mitchie talks about you all the time," Sierra said.

"Yea same here. She was so excited that you were coming to town."

Just then Alicia came in.

"Caitlyn, Mitchie, you need to call Nate, he's been trying to…oops."

Alicia stopped mid-sentence seeing a person in the cabin that wasn't normally in the cabin.

"It's ok, I know that Mitchie knows Connect 3," Sierra commented.

"Alicia, Sierra. Sierra, Alicia," Mitchie introduced hoping that it would be the last introduction for today.

"Hi," Alicia commented before deciding it was safe to finish her sentence, "Anywho, Nate wants a call from both of you. He said he was worried that you had forgotten about your buddies mid-week."

Mitchie laughed at this.

'_Everything is different, why do things change? I'm still standing here, but you've walked away. Everything is nothing now that I see, everything we are is everything we're gonna be."_

"Hello?"

_I know you're busy and you said you wanted to focus on school and everything, but are you mad at me???? I'm really sorry if I did anything to you. I didn't kiss her; she kissed me and trust me she's suffering for it._

"Shane, so down. I barely got half of that."

Shane took a breath and started over.

_Are you mad at me?_

"I wouldn't have answered the phone if I was. So I'm gonna answer no. Tess already tried to call and say sorry. I didn't talk to her, Caitlyn did. You're off the hook."

_Did Caitlyn know?_

"No, she still doesn't."

_Oh. So what's up? I haven't talked to you since Wednesday._

"My friend from home is sleeping over tonight, Caitlyn has been complaining about school since it started and Rachel told me not to come to class until Monday."

_How many days have you been out?_

"Three, but it was just basic cords so I didn't miss anything."

_That's cool. Did Caitlyn get out of it too?_

"No, neither did Peggy."

_That's weird. You still hanging out with Abigail and Alicia?_

"Yea. Alicia's really nice; thank Nate for putting her in my cabin."

_Is Abigail really close with her sister?_

"Not really, Shane what's going on? Why are you freaking out all of a sudden?"

_Mitchie, if you were the only one kept out of Guitar, there is something going on that you don't know about._

"I think you are worrying to much. How would she know something? I haven't even brought you up in front of her."

_Abigail._

"No, Shane, I refuse to believe that Abby told her anything. She's the one who came up with the cover story last weekend."

_Fine. I trust your judgment, but if it comes out that I was right I want you to remember that I warned you._

"Ok, pop star. I have to go; everyone is looking at me funny because I have mentioned them all in this conversation."

_Haha oops. Ok, bye Mitchie._

"Bye, Shane."

Mitchie's roommates rolled their eyes and Sierra stood in a stage of shock.

Her best friend had just talked to THE SHANE GRAY. More than that, she had talked to him like he was just an average guy. She had had a conversation with SHANE GRAY as if he was not part of the hottest band around.

Mitchie put her phone away.

"So what did he ask about me?" Abigail asked.

"He thinks you are in cahoots with your sister and telling her everything that goes on in this cabin. I said he was crazy."

Abigail nodded.

"You know I wouldn't tell Rachel that stuff right?" Abigail asked reassuringly.

"Of course," Mitchie answered.

That was when Sierra realized that Abigail was THE ABIGAIL. She was Rachel's sister; she was famous by association. Sierra sucked in her breath quickly. This did not go unnoticed. Everyone's attention went to Sierra.

"Sorry, I just realized that you are Abigail Anadeski."

Abigail gave a shaky laugh.

"Oh, I almost forgot," Mitchie spoke up, "Mom said she wanted a little help in the kitchen. Any takers?"

Sierra volunteered and they left the cabin together.

"Sorry," Sierra said as she followed Mitchie towards the kitchen.

"Sorry for what?"

"I made a complete fool of myself back there."

"Don't worry about it. They are just comfortable with each other or they would be freaking out about it too. I freaked out when I found out that Shane's ex-girlfriend's sister was going to be in my cabin too."

"But you freaked out for different reasons. She seemed upset about it."

"Don't worry about it. She's used to it…she doesn't like it, but she gets that reaction a lot."

"I'm so stupid," Sierra remarked as they reached the kitchen.

Mitchie could hear the Final Jam CD being played and her mom singing poorly along with another, not so bad voice.

Mitchie held the door open to the kitchen as she walked in, followed by Sierra.

_Well this is embarrassing. My mom singing, very out of tune with Rachel Anadeski and my already star struck best friend right behind me._

"Mooom," Mitchie whined, "this is so embarrassing."

Connie turned around and stopped singing.

"Oh, come on Mitchie, lighten up. You're mom can sing if she wants to, she's learning just like you did that it's a great way to let your emotions out."

That's when it hit Mitchie…

_This is this year's Final Jam CD. Rachel is going to hear me sing…has she already heard me sing? Did she hear Shane join in???_

"Mom, can we pick a different CD? We have a ton."

Mitchie walked over to the stereo and found an old Connect 3 CD, but then she thought better of it because Rachel was there. She finally ended up picking out a Rachel Anadeski CD and playing that instead.

"Ok. Fine. I'll listen to my own voice instead of perfectly good songs I've never heard before," Rachel commented.

This made Mitchie feel slightly bad, but then she remembered that Sierra was still standing by the door in a star struck way.

"Sorry," Mitchie said apologetically, returning to Sierra's side and pulling her farther into the room.

"Rachel, I'd like you to meet my best friend, Sierra. Sierra, this is my guitar teacher and the famous country singer Rachel Anadeski."

Sierra just stared.

"It's nice to meet you," Rachel said holding out her hand, "you can just call me Rachel."

Sierra stared at the hand for a moment before Mitchie nudged her to take it.

"Y-yea, y-you too," Sierra responded.

"So, are you girls here to help, or did you ruin my fun for nothing?" Connie asked.

Sierra, Mitchie and Rachel turned to the task at hand.

When they were finished, they all headed into the mess hall to wait for the other students to get there.

"Rachel, I know how I can make it up to you that I didn't let you here the other songs on the CD."

"Oh, Mitchie, I was kidding. You don't have to do anything."

"No, it'll be fun. I'll sing the song I did at Final Jam," Mitchie said heading over to the piano, "It's a treat for Sierra too. She never gets to hear me sing."

_I've always been the kind of girl  
That hid my face  
So afraid to tell the world  
What I've got to say  
But I have this dream  
bright inside of me  
I'm gonna let it show  
It's time to let you know  
to let you know  
This is real  
This is me  
I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be now  
Gonna let the light shine on me  
Now I've found who I am  
There's no way to hold it in  
No more hiding who I wanna be  
This is me  
Do you know what it's like  
To feel so in the dark  
To dream about a life  
Where you're the shining star  
Even though it seems  
Like it's too far away  
I've got to believe in myself  
It's the only way  
This is real  
This is me  
I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be now  
Gonna let the light shine on me  
Now I've found who I am  
There's no way to hold it in  
No more hiding who I wanna be  
This is me_

Rachel and Sierra were not the only one's clapping when Mitchie finished. As it turned out, the mess hall had filled up significantly and everyone was clapping. Mitchie smiled and waved in an embarrassed way.

She got up from the piano and made her way back into the kitchen with Sierra close behind.

"Rachel Anadeski heard you sing."

Mitchie breathed hard. She had just sang her heart out in front of over a hundred people and Rachel Anadeski had clapped for her.

_I can't believe I did that…I gotta call Shane._

Rachel stuck her head into the kitchen.

"Mitchie, they were wondering if you wanted to do another song. Would you? You have an amazing talent and I would love an encore just as much as your fellow students."

Mitchie was shocked, but what shocked her more was that she nodded. She decided that she would do another song without even being conscious of the decision.

Rachel left the room to wait with the others in the mess hall.

"Sierra?"

"Yea."

"Did I just say I was going to sing in front of over one hundred people?"

"I think you did."

Mitchie slowly walked back out to the piano.

_Whoo, yeah, yeah, yeah!  
How to choose  
Who to be  
Well lets see  
There's so many choices now  
Play guitar, be a movie star  
In my head, a voice says  
If I decide  
I'm the girl  
To change the world  
I can do it anytime  
Opportunity  
Right in front of me  
And the choice if all mine  
Why not?  
Try everything  
Why stop?  
Reach for any dream  
I can rock  
'cause it's my life and now's the time  
Who will I be?  
It's up to me  
All the never ending possibilities  
That I can see  
There's nothing that I can't do  
Who will I be?  
Yes I believe  
I get to make the future what I want to  
If I can become anyone and know the choice is  
Up to me!  
who will I be?_

_I wanna find out who I am inside  
Who will I be  
I wanna show the way that  
I can shine, yeah!  
Oh yeah, yeah!  
Who will I be?  
It's up to me  
All the never ending possibilities  
That I can see  
There's nothing that I can't do  
Who will I be?  
Yes I believe  
I get to make the future what I want to  
If I can become anyone and know the choice up to me  
Who will I be?  
Whoo, who will I be?  
Who will I be!_

There was thunderous applause around the entire room. Mitchie smiled. She had accomplished something bigger than herself. She had just sang in front of a crowd, with knowledge of doing it, and without someone near by to fall back on. She got up and waved before going back into the kitchen and pulling out her cell phone.

_Hello?_

"You'll never guess what I just did."

_You sang in front of two hundred or more people._

"That's no fair, who told you?"

_What!? That actually happened! I was guessing._

"Yea, I was playing around before dinner with Rachel and that friend I told you was coming to visit. She wanted to hear my final jam song."

_Mitchie, I hate to break it to you but two is a lot less than two hundred._

"I wasn't done. It started out that way, but by the time I was done, half the camp had shown up."

_That's terrific._

"There's more."

_More?_

"Rachel came in about five seconds after I left the piano and told me they wanted me to sing again."

_You got an encore?_

"Yea. Isn't that fantastic!"

_That's amazing Mitchie. I can't wait until you go on tour, you'll do great._

"Tour?"

Things began to click in Mitchie's head. Brown was not only giving her voice lessons, he was recording her songs. He was so eager to get songs done that he was willing to pull her from studying after school so that she could work on recording.

_I didn't say anything. I don't know what you're talking about. What tour?_

"Shane…"

Rachel walked in at that moment.

_I didn't say a thing._

"¿Dígame la verdad, es eso porqué Brown es grabación yo? ¿Conseguí un reparto de registro que no sabía sobre nuestro algo?"(***FOR NON-SPANISH READERS*** Tell me the truth, is that why Brown is recording me? Did I get a record deal that I didn't know about our something?)

The only one who could have understood the speed at which he spoke would be Sierra or a fluent Spanish speaking person. Sierra's face went into shock

_Mitchie I can't understand your rapid Spanish. I can speak it but that was way too fast and why not speak to me in English? That would be an even better idea._

"I got to go. Keep up the good work on you Spanish. Adios."

_Rachel?_

"Uh-hu, Bye"

_Bye._

Mitchie turned to face Rachel.

"What's up?"

"Was that Shane?"

"Why do you ask?"

"Just curious. Listen, I know he's my ex-boyfriend and everything, but it's ok if you're friends with him."

"Oh. O-ok."

"I just didn't want you to think that it would be weird between us if you, you know, liked him or something. He's a great guy; sometimes I wish I still had him."

"Oh."

"So, how are things between him and Tess? You're still tutoring him right?"

"Yea. How do you know about Tess though?"

"It was on Jommy and Lisa."

"You saw it too?"

"Yea, pretty interesting couple don't you think?"

"It's not the pair I would have picked, but if Shane's happy that's good enough for me."

"Anyway, you did really great out there. I just wanted to let you know that you'll definitely make it in the music world if that's really what you want to do."

"Thanks," Mitchie answered.

The awkward silence was broken by Sierra who had finally found her voice.

"Listen, Rachel, I know you probably get this a lot and it's probably not something you want to do when you are on break from tour, but can I have an autograph."

"Yea sure," Rachel said turning to Sierra who was holding up a napkin.

After Rachel signed the napkin she said she wanted to eat and left for the staff table.

"You hungry?" Mitchie asked Sierra.

"Not really, you?"

"No, how about we head back to the cabin for a little bit, I've had enough excitement for one day."

Sierra nodded and the two left and headed back to the cabin.

While everyone was at dinner they talked about Sierra and her week at school. She said that she and John were getting closer and that she had already managed to be put at the top of the class for another year. She seemed happy to be with Mitchie, but Mitchie could tell that something was off.

"Sierra, are you ok?"

"Yea, why wouldn't I be?"

"You just seem, I don't know, a little…off…"

"I'm fine, it's just been a busy week and you haven't been around to rant to so it's been a little harder, that's all."

Sierra rubbed her stomach. This did not go unnoticed by Mitchie.

"Are you sure you're not hungry?"

"Yea, I had a big lunch and then I had a small bag of pretzels on the train."

"O-ok."

They continued their conversation through out the rest of the meal time and until Caitlyn came back to the cabin. She was on her cell phone, again.

"Yea, everything's taken care of. Ok, good luck, I'll talk to you later."

There was a pause.

"It's Friday so call me when you're done, I have no plan of getting up early tomorrow."

Caitlyn hung up the phone.

"So, what have you two been up to? You missed dinner."

Sierra's stomach growled.

_Something's up. She's hungry. Why is she lying?_

**

* * *

DUN DUN DUUUUUN What's going on??? Ok so I hope you enjoyed that. It had a lot of answered questions so I want long reviews, but I'll go for short ones too if you don't have a lot to say. Thanks for reading, Lacey**


	27. Whole Truth and Nothing But The Truth

**Yay! I finished the chapter! There are lots of answers in this chapter. The song is from the movie and I hope you enjoy it. Sorry there is no Shane in this chapter but he'll be back next chapter.

* * *

**

LAST TIME

"So, what have you two been up to? You missed dinner."

Sierra's stomach growled.

_Something's up. She's hungry. Why is she lying?_

* * *

**NOW**

Mitchie and Sierra talked to Caitlyn for about five minutes while Mitchie put a couple of sets of clothing into her duffle bag. When she was done, Mrs. Torres came in and told the girls that it was time to go. They said goodbye to Caitlyn and headed out to Connie's van.

When they arrived at the house, Sierra stared in aw.

"Wow, this place is big."

"Business is booming at the hardware store and mom's getting paid really well at the camp."

Mitchie's dad came out to greet them and welcomed them into the house.

Sierra followed Mitchie up the stairs into Mitchie's room.

"Tada."

"Wow, this is really nice. No wonder you didn't have a problem leaving me. I'd leave me too if my house looked this nice."

"I didn't see the house before I moved. I'm barely here anyways. The last time I was here was last Sunday."

"So, you really live at Camp Rock, all the time?"

Mitchie nodded while Sierra looked around.

The two put their stuff on the bed.

Mitchie's dad had added a couple things to the room. He had unpacked more of her old posters and it looked like he had bought two or three Connect 3 and other band posters that were still rolled up. He had also put up a few shelves and set up a small wooden desk for her computer and weekend homework.

"So, what do you want to do first?" Mitchie asked.

"How about a tour."

"Ok."

Mitchie lead Sierra out of her room and into the hallway.

"Well, that was my room, this is the guest room," Mitchie said opening the door to her left.

Mitchie closed the door again and travel down the hallway and went to the next room. Here the door was already open and she could see the blue walls.

_So that's why dad bought the other posters, we still have and empty wall._

"This is the music room. I'm really excited to start using it over the holidays. I think it'll be a great place for inspiration."

"Yea, no doubt. I think I could draw inspiration from this room myself, and that picture window is just perfect to look out over the beautiful prairie," Sierra commented.

"Moving on," Mitchie said moving again out of the room, "This is my parents' room, and at the other end of the hallway is my bathroom."

Sierra nodded.

"Now for downstairs…I haven't really been downstairs yet. We left for Camp Rock right after I unpacked, and I had people over last Sunday so I didn't really have time to see anything, so we can explore together."

Sierra laughed at the idea that Mitchie could be lost in her own house but followed her down the stairs anyway.

Mitchie started in the kitchen; she knew where it was. After that, they saw the dinning room and the den. They were about to head down stairs when Sierra noticed a sign on the door. "UNDER CONSTRUCTION! NO MITCHIE ALLOWED!"

_Hmm… that's funny._

"I guess we're on to the back yard then," Sierra said.

"Hang on I have to ask my mom something."

Mitchie found her mother sitting at the kitchen table reading a book.

"Hey mom?"

"Hang on a second sweetie this is a really good part of the book," Connie said, "Ok. What's up?"

"I was wondering where you put that magazine you bought. What are you reading?"

"The magazine is on the table in the den. Rachel recommended this book, it's really good. It's about the Dresden bombing during World War II. It also has aliens in it." (SLAUGHTERHOUSE FIVE)

"Sounds interesting," Mitchie commented.

She left the kitchen, grabbed the magazine out of the den, and went back to where she had left Sierra.

"Ok, now we can go to the back yard."

Mitchie led the way out onto the porch. They sat at the picnic table and opened the newest issue of Pop Informer.

* * *

_Shane Gray's New Girl Friend_

_Last spotted at a Georgia show, Shane Gray was seen hugging a tall skinny blonde. Her identity is not yet known but sources tell us that the couple looked pretty close. Other sources report that this girl was the reason Gray dumped country sensation Rachel Anadeski. Could this be true? Did Gray two time Anadeski?_

* * *

Below the article was a picture of Tess and Shane hugging with Nate and Jason off to the side.

_Relax Mitchie, this is old news. Shane doesn't like Tess. They aren't even speaking._

Sierra gasped as she finished the article.

"Shane Gray and a blonde? Who could she be?

"Why aren't you freaking out? Did you read this before I did?"

"Sierra, you can't tell me you didn't tape Jommy and Lisa in the Morning. You always tape it."

"I was in a rush to get out of the house on Wednesday because I woke up late. I forgot to hit the record button and I missed it."

"It was a bad day for you to miss, Sierra."

"What happened?"

"You need to see it for yourself. I think my dad taped it, let me go ask."

Mitchie went inside and asked her mom where her dad was. Her mom said he was in the basement, but she got up and got him before Mitchie had even taken another step.

"What's up honey?" Mitchie's dad asked, coming into the room, covered in saw dust.

"Did you tape Jommy and Lisa this week?"

"Sure I did. Why?"

"Sierra missed an episode and I thought we could watch it."

"Oh. The Connect 3 interview?"

"Yea."

"It's in the den. The tape is already in so just rewind to the right episode."

"Thanks dad."

"No problem Mitchie."

Mitchie went back outside to get Sierra.

Sierra was sitting at the table engrossed in another interview. It was with Rachel Anadeski. Apparently meeting her in person was not enough to stop Sierra from reading the teen magazine articles about Rachel.

"Hey Sierra," Mitchie called.

"Yea," Sierra said, not even looking up.

"My dad said we could watch it. Come on."

Sierra got up, still engrossed in the magazine and headed in the direction of Mitchie's voice. She only looked up when she had reached the shadow of the house.

The two girls walked into the den and took a seat.

"Did you know that Rachel wrote a song about Shane?"

"Really?"

"Yea, it's going to be on the album that comes out in November. I still can't believe that she decided to work at your school instead of touring."

"Yep, she's pretty different. She even told me that if I wanted to be friends with Shane she would be ok with it. She even said if I liked him she would be cool with it."

"Really, wow that's very bold of her."

"Sierra, you were in the room when the conversation happened. Does any of this ring a bell?"

"You can't expect me to pay attention to a conversation when Rachel Anadeski is actually in the same room with me, do you?"

Mitchie shrugged and turned on the tape and found the episode. The Sierra watched TJ Tyler's interview with little interest. Mitchie, on the other hand, focused on Tess's face, as if she wanted to bore into her the question that was killing her. _What was she thinking?_

Then Mitchie realized something else though. She saw more in Tess's face than ever before. There was a look of neglect or resentment. There was also a look of pain. It was hidden well, but Mitchie could see that there was something more to Tess than met her eye originally. _She looks so sad…why is she so upset? She has had everything she's ever wanted and more. Her mom is TJ Tyler for crying out loud…_

Finally the boys came onto the stage. They greeted the audience and Jommy and Lisa. They started the interview with questions about the new tour and their summer. Then the dreaded twenty seconds began to unravel again, just as it had when Mitchie had been sitting in the kitchen with Caitlyn and Connie. Tess came out onto the stage and kissed Shane. The camera caught the whole thing and it would forever be engrained in Mitchie's head.

_Why would she do that? How could she do that? She gave me her word._

Mitchie heard Sierra's quick breath intake.

"How come you didn't call? I would have thought you would have been practically dying because of this."

"I was. You were at school when I found out. I was really broken up but I had to go to classes anyway. It was on right before breakfast so it's not like I could have ditched the entire school day to sit in my cabin talking on the phone.

"Caitlyn calmed me down enough to get to my classes, but it was tough and I had a lot of problems that day. This girl, Amy, was trying to cheer me up because Caitlyn had told her that I was having 'boy trouble,' but then she tried to change the subject by bringing up Shane. That really didn't help at all, but Caitlyn and Peggy pushed me through the day anyway."

"You still should have called."

"Well, Shane called me three times right after the interview and I didn't pick up, but then Nate called and said Shane ran away. He begged me to call Shane and make him go back to the tour, so I had to talk to Shane. Then Tess tried to call and fix everything, but I was so mad I couldn't speak to her. Caitlyn screamed at her a little and then I felt good enough to finish the week."

"So… you're ok with Shane and Tess?"

"Sierra, it's fake. It was never meant to be real. No I'm not ok it but it doesn't matter because it's not real."

"But they kissed."

"But it wasn't supposed to happen. That's why Shane ran away. He was coming to see me. He knew I saw it and was he upset that it happened. We were both upset," Mitchie explained

"Oh, I think I get it."

Sierra's stomach growled again.

"Hungry?"

"Not really. I'm too excited to eat."

"Are you sure?"

"Yea," Sierra said, but her stomach growled in protest.

"Ok," Mitchie said, not wanting to push the subject just yet.

Sierra's cell phone rang. _'You know that you want it. You've gotta have your star on the door. You want the world, nothin' less, all the glam and the press only giving you the best reviews.' _She pulled it out of her pocket, dropped it and scrambled to the floor to get it, but not before Mitchie saw then name on the caller ID.

_Karina_

"Hello?" Sierra answered, "Hey, sorry I can't talk right now, can I call you back?"

Mitchie listened with interest.

"I'm almost there, two more, I think… I-I can do it, I promise."

Sierra hung up the phone and saw Mitchie standing there in disbelief.

"You and-and Karina?"

"Mitchie, listen…"

"NO, I can't believe you would go and be friends with that girl after what she did to me."

Mitchie got to her feet in anger.

"Mitchie that was a long time ago and you weren't around," Sierra reasoned.

Sierra got to her feet too.

"I've been gone for one freaking week and you have already turned on me?!" Mitchie exclaimed.

"Mitchie listen to me. I'm sorry, but I need friends that I see everyday…"

"So you stab me in the back and hang out with the girl that bullied me around all though middle school."

"Mitchie, please…"

"Don't Mitchie please me, I want an explanation, and I want it now.

"You say you're not hungry, but your stomach has been growling since you got to Camp and then you get a phone call from the girl who accused me of being a racist lesbian and you tell me that you two are friends.

"I'm sorry if you think that I would take that well. I'm a pretty level headed person and I was ok with the fact that your boyfriend moved into my house and that his sister and you hit it off and that you had made friends over the summer. I made friends too so that's not what's bugging me.

"It's Katrina! Sierra, she hurt me and you became friends with her. Don't forget that she hurt you too. She made you her little slave until we stood up to her at the eighth grade dance. She pushed you around and she pinned us against each other every chance she got. Why would you do that to yourself?"

Sierra grabbed Mitchie by the shoulders and pushed her back to the couch. Mitchie was about to protest but Sierra cut her off in her most "mom" way possible.

"Don't… Ok, now you listen to me. You left and I went home to find John's sister sitting on my front porch. She said that she and John needed a place to stay for the night. So, my dad and mom let them stay with us until they got the all clear from your dad to buy the house. They actually are still living with us for another week because closing hasn't happened yet.

"You know that Karina is my neighbor. Well… on Sunday when we were headed out to church, Karina saw us all getting into the car and came out to flirt with John and introduce herself to Lilac, John's sister. Lilac is really smart, but she has style too. She would be a person that would hang out with Karina. Karina was nice to her and invited her to the annual end of the summer bash at her house that afternoon and she invited John and me too.

"I didn't want to go… at first… but Lilac said she wouldn't go without me and I thought that if she went she could meet some other people from school and she wouldn't feel out cast on the first day.

"I went, I danced with John, talked to some of my old classmates, and then Karina came up to me and started asking me questions. She wanted to know why we ever stopped hanging out and what happened to you… you know, like why I hadn't dragged you to the party too.

"I told her it was none of her business, but if she must know you had moved to Arkansas for school. She said that it was too bad and that she had wanted to say she was sorry for making fun of you and stuff. I didn't buy it at first, but then she invited me to go shopping with her after the party.

"I said yes, because I wanted to show her I had grown above her immaturity. We ended up having a good time and we hung out this week during school. That's all, nothing else. John and I are still perfectly together and Lilac hangs out with us during lunch and afterschool. Karina has taken her on, kind of like a younger sister. It's actually pretty weird. Mitchie, I promise that she's changed. I wouldn't be hanging out with her if she hadn't."

_So, she some how Karina told her that she was fat and that is why she's not eating. She thinks she's fat because Karina told her so and is making her go on a diet._

"Are you done?" Mitchie asked.

"Yes."

"If she's so great than why is she asking you to loose weight?"

"She's not, she's helping me."

"Helping you? You were fine the way you were! Why are you not eating?"

"Mitchie, it's my decision. I want to loose weight; I want to fit into dresses. I want to do the stupid fashion show and I don't care what you say about it!"

_Whoa, that was not what I was expecting. Did she just say fashion show? Why would she do that? She never cared about her clothes before._

"Oh," Mitchie said a little stunned, "I'm-I'm sorry. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions about Karina."

"It's ok. I know you had a bad past with her, but you have to trust that I can make my own friends. I can take care of myself Mitchie."

"I know. It's just… how do you know that she really has changed? You never wanted to do some thing like this before. How could you have changed so much in one week? I was only gone one week and I feel like I don't even know you anymore…"

"Mitchie, I'm still the same girl. I'm still the corky girl that speaks ten languages and gets strait A's in all my classes. I wasn't joking when I told you I was the top of my class already. I want to do this fashion show because it sounded like fun and Lilac wanted someone she knew to do it with her. It's no big deal; I just need to loose ten pounds to fit into the dress, that's all and I have two pounds left."

"So that's why you're not eating? You're starving yourself?"

"No, not exactly. I'm cutting down. I know that we're going to have snacks tonight so I had a light lunch and the pretzels during lunch, but I'm not going to eat until our midnight goodies, that's all."

Mitchie nodded understanding.

"Why didn't you just say something? You had me really worried about you. I thought you were anorexic or pregnant or something."

Sierra laughed.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to make you think that. I just thought you would think I was being stupid."

"Not at all. If I can be a singer, you can be a fashion model."

"Thanks, Mitchie. You're a great friend."

The girls hugged each other.

"So what do you say we find the local drug store around here," Sierra suggested.

"Sierra, I like the way you think. I'll go ask my dad how to get to town."

Mitchie got up and walked into the kitchen to find her mom and dad huddled over a rolled out sheet of paper.

"Hey Dad," Mitchie called.

The Torreses jumped and scrambled to roll up the piece of paper that they had been looking at.

"Yes, sweetie?"

"Sierra and I wanted to check out the local drug store, is there one in walking distance?"

"It's about a mile, but you could take your mother and your bikes."

"Ok. Which direction?"

"Left at the end of the driveway. You went straight through the middle of town on your way here."

"Thanks Dad," Mitchie called as she went back to Sierra.

"Let's go, I got make shift directions. I have a feeling they want me out of the house too."

Sierra grabbed her purse and followed Mitchie out the door to the garage on the side of the house. Once they both had a bike with good wheels, they headed out in the direction Mr. Torres had suggested.

About fifteen minutes later they arrived in a town. It was much bigger than Sierra's town, but it was still small (if you've been to West Bend, WI. It's like that). Mitchie and Sierra wandered around looking for the drug store before Sierra pointed out that someone was waving at Mitchie.

"Mitchie do you know that guy?"

Mitchie looked in the direction that Sierra was pointing.

"Yea he looks familiar."

"Let's go say hi then."

Sierra pulled Mitchie in the direction of the boy who had been waving.

"Hey Mitchie," the boy greeted.

"Hey…"

"Adam, friends with Lea…"

"Right. Sorry I'm bad with names. What's up?"

"Not much, just picking up some Gatorade for my run with Tom later. Who's your friend?"

"Oh, this is Sierra. She's from Hornsby, Tennessee. We have been friends for a long time. Sierra, this is Adam, he goes to the church Mom took me to last week."

"That's cool. I have a couple friends in Tennessee too. I go to a camp in Washington and people from all over the U.S. come to spend a week or two there," Adam commented.

"What kind of camp?" Sierra asked.

"It's a bible camp. Yea, I have spent at least a week up there every summer since about fifth grade."

"That's cool. Hey, where is the nearest drug store, like a Wal-verdes or something?" Mitchie inquired.

"Um that would be Christine's. It's about a block farther down. I'm headed that way too; I'll walk with you."

Adam and the girls talked a little more. Adam was on cross country, boys swimming and volleyball. He was a junior and he was interested in science. He had known Tom for about eight years, but they had only been in school together for about two. Adam had four sisters and no brothers. Lea and he had been friends since they were four, but as much as people teased them, they were only friends. Sarah was the only person that ever got on Adam's nerves because they were neighbors and she liked to blast music at two in the morning.

As they reached Christine's, Tom came walking out.

"Hey, dude. Who are the chicks?"

"Tom, you remember Mitchie from church last Sunday right?"

"Oh yea she was hanging out with that really weird girl, Abigail, right?"

"Not as weird as you think," Mitchie responded.

"What are you doing in town? I thought you lived at the camp."

"I do, but my mom is the cook and my dad owns the new hardware store here so I went home for the weekend while a friend came to visit," Mitchie explained.

"This is Sierra," Adam introduced, "Did I get the name right?"

Sierra nodded.

"Nice to meet you. I hate to be rude but the sun will be going down soon and Adam and I have a four mile run ahead of us…"

"No problem, we have to get going too," Mitchie said with a smile.

"We'll see you Sunday then?" Tom asked.

"Yea, see you Sunday."

Mitchie and Sierra headed into the small drug store. On the self behind the counter were teen magazines and a coffee machine. Mr. Rancher was standing behind the counter reading a newspaper.

"Hi," Mitchie said, approaching the counter.

"Hello," Mr. Rancher said, putting down his newspaper, "Mitchie, right?"

"Yea. You own Christine's?"

"It's actually my wife's business, but she had a women's retreat this weekend so Thomas and I are running things."

"That's cool."

"If there is anything I can get you or your friend, just give a holler and I'll be able to help you. Friday nights tend to be slow anyway."

"Thanks."

Sierra looked over the names on the magazines and saw one with a picture of Shane and Tess on the cover.

"Um… can I get that magazine over there with the blonde girl on the cover?" Sierra asked.

Mr. Rancher got it down and put it on the counter.

Mitchie asked for a pack of gum and paid for the magazine too. After a "Thank you" and "goodbye," the girls left the shop and headed down the center of town with their bikes. Sierra pointed out a library and a book store as they went. They were halfway down the street when Sierra pointed at the only sign in town that made her feel like she was back in Hornsby with Mitchie.

There in all its glory was Mitchie's father's hardware store. Mitchie's dad had hired a couple people to work the evenings in the store so that he could be home when Connie was.

Seeing that it was open, she went in to look around. Sierra followed, wanting to see what it was like as well.

There was a bell on top of the door to let the manager know that there were customers in the store and they were joined quickly by Lea and James in Torres Hardware aprons.

"Hello, how can we help you?" Lea asked, sounding kind of bored and chipping her nail polish.

"We're just looking around. It's Lea, right?"

"Oh, hey," Lea said, looking up and recognizing Mitchie for the first time.

"This is my friend Sierra. Sierra this is Lea and…James?"

James nodded and extended his hand to Sierra.

"Nice to meet you both," Sierra commented, shaking James' hand.

"So why did you guys wander into a hardware store? I know I wouldn't if I hadn't needed a part time job," Lea questioned.

"Oh, I know the owner," Mitchie answered, "I was just curious how this place came out. I've never actually been into one of my dad's stores before."

"Your dad?" James asked.

"Yea, Mr. Torres is Mitchie's dad," Sierra replied.

The two teens looked shocked, but Lea came out of it first.

"I guess that makes sense. He did say his daughter was away at school."

Just then there was a jingle of the bell on the door again Mitchie and Sierra. Lea's face changed from one of kindness to one of toleration.

"Lea!"

Mitchie and Sierra turned to see who had spoken

"Hey, Sarah. What's up?" Lea responded, in a less than enthusiastic tone.

"I just got some fantastic news…"

James faked excitement.

"What's the news?" he asked dramatically, "Did Evan ask you to Homecoming?"

"No…we're taking a break. He's going with a couple of friends," Sarah spit back.

Her mood seemed dampened by James' comment but she continued on her old train of thought.

"I'm going to London for Christmas! Oh and the best part is that I get to see Connect 3 in concert while I'm there!"

"Oh my gosh, that's so exciting," Lea said, sincerely excited for her 'friend.'

_Wow you get to see a concert in London…that's awesome. Too bad you're lying about it. Shane is spending Christmas with Brown._

"How did you get tickets? I thought they were sold out."

"In America they are, but not in Europe. Mom and Dad haven't bought the tickets yet but they said that was part of the plan."

"That sounds cool," Sierra commented.

"Who are you?" Sarah asked, as she finally took notice of Mitchie and Sierra.

"Sarah, I don't think you were formally introduced before. This is Mitchie from that arts school and this is her friend Sierra," James explained.

"Do you go to that school too?" Sarah asked Sierra.

She said it as if the school was something disgusting and unnerving.

_Ouch. Why does she have to be so negative? No wonder Lynn dislikes her. I wouldn't want to hang out with someone that negative either._

"No," Sierra replied, taken aback.

"So Mitchie, is the school any good?" Sarah asked.

"It's really nice actually. I'm learning a lot and I've only been there a week."

"Cool. My boy- I mean Evan was offered a scholarship there, but he turned it down."

"He really should have taken it. He's missing out."

"He wanted to stay at the public school with all of his friends," Sarah announced rudely.

"Oh, I see," Mitchie said shocked as well by Sarah's tone of voice.

Lea silently rolled her eyes towards James.

"So Mitchie, what are you doing in town? I thought you lived at the camp," James said changing the subject.

_Oh thank you James._

"Sierra came into town for the weekend so I'm staying at my parent's house."

"Is Rachel still coming to church with you on Sunday?"

"I'm honestly not sure. Probably…My mom might be picking up Abby, Rachel, Barron, and Sandler before church."

"Rachel Anadeski, right?" Sarah asked.

_Where was she last Sunday?_

"Yea," Lea said.

"Oh my gosh, did you see the interview?"

"Shane Gray already has a new girl friend."

"Really, no way," James faked a look of shock.

"Thanks, thanks a lot James. Rachel must be heart broken. They've only been broken up a few weeks and he is already dating one of his campers."

"Campers?" Lea inquired.

"Didn't you know? Tess Tyler went to that Camp Rock this summer and met Shane Gray there. Rachel didn't even see the break up coming because Shane said he was visiting his uncle."

"Really?" Lea asked.

"Yea, Tess went to Camp Rock and Shane Gray was our dance instructor," Mitchie supplied.

"YOU KNOW SHANE GRAY?" three voices shouted.

"I-I tutored him in Spanish during camp and he played music for me in return. Please keep it quiet. There are no perks to knowing a pop star."

"Were they close? Did they hang out a lot?" Sarah asked all of a sudden interested in the fact that Mitchie was alive.

"Not that I could tell, but I only saw him for lessons and occasionally down by the beach. He liked to keep to himself most of the summer."

"Do you think he's really that into her? He looked pretty smitten with her on Lisa and Jommy."

"Yea, they are totally together," Sierra spoke up, knowing that Mitchie would deny knowing anything about Shane's love life, "Anyone who knows anything about Shane knows that the look on his face during the interview was one of complete affection.

_Nice cover Sierra because what you said is totally the opposite of the truth._

'_Look at you, look at me. There's never any us. Can't you see all we can become? We can shine like the sun, if we believe that two stars are brighter than one. Come on, come on, come on, look at you. Come on, come on, come on, look at me.'_

"Well it was cool getting to talk to you guys, but we have to be going, that's my mom," Mitchie said, smiling and dragging Sierra out the door.

'_Look at you, look at me. There's never any us. Can't you see all we can become? We can shine like the sun, if we believe that two stars are brighter than one. Come on, come on, come on, look at you. Come on, come on, come on, look at me.'_

The group waved goodbye as Mitchie and Sierra grabbed their bikes and started down the road again.

'_Look at you, look at me. There's never any us. Can't you see all we can become? We can shine like the sun, if we believe that two stars are brighter than one. Come on, come on, come on, look at you. Come on, come on, come on, look at me.'_

Once they were well enough away from the group, Mitchie pulled her phone from her pocket and showed the caller ID to Sierra.

_Tess._

"Should I answer it?"

"Tess Tyler?????"

"Yea, the girl who kissed Shane on national television. Should I answer it?"

"Yes. You need to clear things up with her. It'll give you a clearer conscience and you'll feel better after understanding why she did it."

"Hello," Mitchie answered.

_Mitchie I know you're mad but please listen to me._

"I'll listen but don't think I'm happy with you or going to be your friend any time soon."

_Five minutes that's all I ask. Nate is the only person talking to me right now and I understand that I screwed up royally._

"You could say that again, and again, and again..."

_I get it and I'm really, really, really sorry._

"Please do me a favor and get to the point."

_Mitchie I can't believe I did that. I betray your trust and that was wrong of me. I should have said no to George…_

"Who's George?"

_The band manager…he-he asked me to show affection to Shane. He said that if we were going to be a public couple, we should show off our affection…I guess I bought into the fact that I would get attention by doing what George told me to._

"Congratulations, you got your wish. Too bad you screwed over what could have been a really good friendship in the process."

_I can't believe I did that. Mitchie, you have to believe me when I say that I cried for days after I did that and I'm on the verge of tears just trying to talk to you now. I talked to Nate and he told me that I should have said no and I understand now, but it's really hard for me not to try to please people._

"Ok, now you have to explain that because you didn't do anything to please anyone at camp except yourself. I have a hard time believing that kissing Shane had anything to do with pleasing someone."

_I thought that if I had talent and won the Final Jam then it would please my mom and she would care about me. I didn't win, but she let me come on tour with her as long as I helped her out with her wardrobe and make up._

_She wasn't pleased because I was always in her way, so I started spending more time with the guys. She wasn't pleased with that either because I wasn't there to help her when she needed it. _

Tess started to sniffle.

_I was trying to please you and Shane to prove that I could be a good friend, but that didn't seem to please you because I was getting too close to Shane. You told me to spend time with him so I decided to follow the instructions you have given me because it would please you and Shane even though it made you slightly uncomfortable._

_My mom wanted me to be known and I thought that by pleasing you and Shane by doing this fake dating thing I could please everyone. Shane would be happy because Rachel would be off his back, you would be happy because Shane would appear unavailable, and my mom would be happy because I would have the fame she always wanted me to have._

Mitchie could hear the wateriness in Tess' voice.

_I threw myself at Shane in those pictures…I thought I had finally pleased her… she saw the pictures but said that I had photo shopped them. Then George asked me to show affection to Shane when I got on stage for the interview. He said that it should be more than what the tabloids had seen._

"So you kissed him? To please his band manager…"

_Yes, and you have no idea how much I regret that decision._

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I believe you…you're whole story. Tess, is there something wrong other than this whole thing?"

Mitchie could hear Tess sobbing on the other line.

_Yes, yes there is._

"Is it… is it your mom?"

Tess sobbed harder.

* * *

**So? How was that? I know it's missing Shane, but a lot of this needed to be resolved. I hope the Tess thing is ok. I wasn't sure if i wanted Mitchie to forgive her or not, but I think it was the right decision. Besides, Shane can still hate her even if Mitchie doesn't. Lots of lovely reviews please! ~Lacey~**


	28. Late Night Conversations

**Sorry it's been soooo long! I was gone on a couple of trips. Hope this is to your liking. It's one in the morning!!!  


* * *

LAST TIME**

_Yes, yes there is._

"Is it… is it your mom?"

Tess sobbed harder.

* * *

**NOW**

Mitchie was concerned for Tess. They may have been in a rough patch and had trouble being friends in the past, but Mitchie had a soft spot for Tess. She could not explain it, not even to herself, but she knew she needed to be there for Tess.

"Tess, calm down. I know that you're sorry and I promise I'll get over it, but don't expect me to be super trusting with you any time soon. Right now let's just figure out how to make things better."

Mitchie heard the sniffling on the other end and a soft "ok."

"Now, what's going on with your mom?"

Mitchie had forgotten where she was and who she was with, but it did not matter to her as long as Tess would stop crying.

_She-she never seems proud of me. It's almost like-like she regrets having a daughter. I feel like a failure._

"Well, I can tell you one thing. You are not a failure. You have a way with words. You're a natural born leader, and no one can take that from you."

_Thanks Mitchie, but I'm not that special. I'm a backstabber without friends. Peggy and Ella even ditched me during Final Jam. I know that I should be a better person and I understand why people turn on me…I-I just feel like if I don't, my mom will see that I'm nothing special and she'll give up completely on me. She already regrets having me on the tour._

"I'm sure that's not true. Have you talked to her?"

_She's too busy... Even when she's off, she's busy with her publicist or her latest boyfriend. I'm just pushed off into a corner until the next summer. The only time she seems to care is…is when I'm at Camp Rock and have a chance to win. There really isn't any reason for me to even try, my mom doesn't care, no body cares._

"Is that really what you think? Tess your mom may be too busy, but I care, Peggy and Ella care, and I'm sure Nate cares or he wouldn't be talking to you."

_Thanks Mitchie, you're a great person. No wonder Shane fell for you. I'll let you go, the boys are getting off the stage and I'm sure Shane wouldn't be happy to see me watching them or see me at all for that matter. Thanks for everything._

"No problem. I'll talk to you soon. And Tess…I might be mad at you right now, but don't be afraid to call or e-mail, ok?"

_Yea, thanks. Bye._

"Bye Tess."

* * *

Shane got off stage to see Tess hanging up. Nate and Jason were slightly behind them and Shane saw Tess smiling for the first time since the interview.

_What's she smiling at? What ever, I'm sure her buddy Nate will tell me later._

Shane continued to the dressing rooms but then saw a camera man coming towards Nate who was walking over to Tess. Shane ran over to save rumors of Tess cheating on him and Nate loosing all hope of dating for awhile.

He went up behind Tess and put his arms around her.

"This is just for Nate and my reputation," he whispered in her ear just as the flash went off.

Shane and Tess's face was happy in the picture but as soon as the camera man had walked away, Shane was off of Tess and bolting towards the dressing room leaving Tess and Nate confused and shocked.

"What was that?" Nate asked Tess.

"That was saving your reputation and apparently his."

"I can see that," Jason said hearing the conversation and having seen what had happened.

"You do?" both Nate and Tess asked.

"He saw the problem coming. If he left Nate here with Tess there would have been a scandal that Tess was cheating on him with Nate. If that happened there would be a 'feud' between Nate and Shane. Also, the tabloids and other media would think you two are 'together;' this is the only way to stop all the drama that would be in the media."

Both Tess and Nate stood there in utter shock at the brilliance of Jason. It seemed impossible that this was the same person who missed so many punch-lines.

Shane continued to his dressing room deep in thought.

_Why did I do that? Mitchie doesn't trust her. I don't trust her. We're not talking; Mitchie and I are almost not on speaking terms either. Mitchie's not talking to her. Mitchie is normally a good judge of character and she doesn't like her…_

Shane changed quickly and headed out to greet the last of the fans with backstage passes and sign a few autographs. He smiled and took pictures. Tess even took a couple pictures with the boys. He took a few pictures with TJ and Nate and Jason. He took pictures with just Jason, then a few with just Nate, and one with Tess. When the last fan had left, everyone headed back to the tour bus.

_Time to sleep, got to love sleep. Maybe Mitchie's still up. I should call her and see how she's doing._

Shane reached the bus first and pulled out his cell phone. Dialing Mitchie's number he took a seat on the sofa. The phone rang twice and Mitchie picked up.

_Shane? What's up?_

"Hey, I hope I didn't wake you."

_Nope, Sierra and I just finished the Parent Trap. We're no where near going to bed. How was your show?_

"It went pretty well. Everyone really liked. There were so many backstage passes tonight. I don't think the flash will ever leave my eyes."

Shane heard Mitchie giggle and whisper something to someone else in the room with her.

_So, to what do I deserve the great pleasure of the Great Shane Gray calling me at two in the morning?_

"Is it really that early there?"

_Yea, but you didn't answer my question._

"I just wanted to say hi. I'm not really that tired right now and Nate and Jason are talking to Tess so it's taking them awhile to get back to the bus."

_Oh, so you called me because you were bored._

"No, I wanted someone to talk to that I care about."

_And you called me? Not your mom…I'm sure she wants to hear from you._

"I can talk to my mom any time. I can only talk to you for extensive periods of time on the weekends. It is a weekend isn't it?"

_It's been Saturday for two hours Shane. I do have a guest though so I can't talk much longer._

"Ok, that's-Ow"

Shane was knocked to the side as a guitar case came towards his head.

_You ok?_

"Yea, I'm fine, but JASON should watch where he throws a guitar case when he comes into the tour bus."

"Dude, it's not my fault you were sitting in the dark," Jason commented turning on the light, "Why were you sitting in the dark anyway?"

"Because I like the dark," Shane answered in a 'no duh' way.

_Shane? What's going on? I don't get it._

"I got hit with a guitar when Jason came in because I didn't turn on the light that's all."

_Oh. I see. Hey you want to do me a huge favor?_

"Depends."

_Will you talk to Sierra? She's a big fan and I really think she would get a kick out of hearing your voice…and Jason if he's still there._

"I think I can do that for you. Jason come over here."

"What?"

"Mitchie's friend Sierra is a big Connect 3 fan and Mitchie wants us to say hi to her."

"Ok. I love fans."

_Hello?_ said an unfamiliar voice into the phone.

"Hi this is Shane…"

"and Jason from…"

"Connect 3," they said together.

"We just wanted to say hi and that it's cool that Mitchie's best friend is such a big fan," Shane said into the phone.

Sierra went quiet on the other end of the phone for a couple seconds.

"Sierra, are you there?" Jason asked.

_You aren't really Connect 3 are you? Mitchie's pulling my leg._

"Nu-uh," Jason said.

"What could I do to prove to you I'm Shane?" Shane asked.

_Hmm…mention me or Mitchie at your concert in Tennessee._

"When is that?" Jason asked.

_You don't even know when you're own concert is?_

"Sierra, why does it matter which concert we're at? I mention Mitchie at every concert…not by name but I wrote a song about her and I say that at every concert…"

_I think I believe you Shane…Mitchie didn't even tell me that. What's it called?_

Shane blushed slightly.

"Gotta Find You."

_Oh my gosh, is that on you're new CD? I haven't heard that one._

"Yea, it's only Shane too. He wanted to solo it, just like he wrote it," Jason explained.

_Does she know that it's about her?_

"I hope so; I sang it to her at Final Jam."

_Oh yea, she did mention that. That's really sweet.'_

"Come on Tess, I know you don't want to be around Shane but my Spanish stuff is in here and I need your help," Nate pleaded as he came onto the bus.

"Hey Nate, come here for a minute," Shane called him over.

"What's up?" Nate asked as he headed over to Shane and Jason who were huddled around Shane's cell phone.

"Say hi to Mitchie's friend Sierra," Jason demanded.

"Ok, I Sierra."

_Hi Nate. Listen Mitchie's getting annoyed with me because I got to talk to you guys for longer than she did and it sounds like you have company so I'm gonna let you go._

"Ok, it was good talking to you," Jason said.

"Don't forget to buy the new CD," Shane called.

"See you in Tennessee," Nate called.

Shane pressed end and everyone spread out in the bus again. Tess had finally bent to Nate's begging and come aboard. Nate led her toward his bunk where he had his Spanish laid out all over the bed.

_Wait a second. He wasn't here when Sierra mentioned Tennessee…how does he know about her saying that? And what gives him the right to let Tess onto this tour bus this is CONNECT 3's tour bus. If one of us is against a guest, they're out._

"Nate, when did we all agree that you could have someone over on the bus?" Shane asked, slightly angry.

_Nate needs to be strait with me._

"Did I have to ask permission? She's been on the bus before without a problem. Why does it matter right now? Oh…"

Shane nodded.

"Shane can Tess stay? I really need to get this stuff done tonight. I have a Spanish paper due tomorrow."

Shane rolled his eyes and nodded his head.

"But I need to ask you a question first. Why did you say that you would see Sierra in Tennessee?"

"Um… Caitlyn told me that she needed tickets for a couple people and she said that Mitchie's friend Sierra was one of them."

"Oh…"

_I wish Mitchie was one of them…Gosh I miss her smile…_

Shane went off to find his computer. He hadn't opened it since the trip and he didn't even remember where he had packed it.

He had been through two suitcases before finding it stuffed at the bottom of his third suitcase. He pulled it out and plugged it in.

Jason was interested in what Shane was doing and came and sat with him at the table.

"Whatcha looking for?" Jason asked when he saw Shane on Doogle.

"A picture," Shane answered simply.

"Ooh you should look up pictures of birds, they are really pretty."

"Not this time Jason," Shane replied while putting 'Mitchie Torres' in to the search menu.

Doogle Results **1** - **10** of about **83,500 **for **Mitchie Torres.**

Shane could not believe how many people had the name Mitchie Torres.

_This is going to take forever! How can there be this many Mitchie Torres' in the world?_

Shane went through five pages before finding Michelle Torres on a MyFace account. The only reason he knew it was the right girl was by the description in the "about me" area.

It said:

_Hey! I'm Michelle but you can call me Mitchie. I don't really know what to say that you don't already know. My best friend is Sierra. I'm an only child. My mom is a caterer and my dad owns a hardware store._

_I love music. My heart and soul is in composing and singing. I also play guitar and piano. I've been playing guitar for about two years now and I've been playing piano for as long as I can remember._

_My dream date would be a picnic on the beach with a guitar and a campfire afterwards._

_I'm a big rock fan. I like Hannah Montana, Connect 3, and TJ Tyler. I'm not an obsessive fan though. If you told me that Hannah Montana was in town, I would want tickets really bad, but I wouldn't scream and jump up and down._

_This summer my dream would be to go to Camp Rock and learn how to play my music even better. My friend Sierra and I heard about it on the internet and then we applied for a brochure about twenty times each so that my mom couldn't say no but she has every time she's found one of them around the house. Boo!_

_My Birthday is May 17, 1992. I'll sixteen and presents are accepted. =)_

_You could say that Sierra is a hero of mine because she was able to overcome a lot more than I could and she's more open than I am._

_If I could meet anyone famous it would be any member of Connect 3. I love their music and have never been able to see them in concert. =( I met Hannah Montana at a state fair a few years back and she was really nice! I hear TJ Tyler has a daughter about my age and so I think it would be kinda weird meeting her._

Shane smile at his amazement that he had found her.

"Shane, you have it really bad," Jason commented.

"Be quiet Jason. I don't have it that bad. She still likes me," Shane reasoned.

"Do you have her e-mail address?"

"No I don't, but we text all the time."

"Oh. Well maybe you should get it so that she can send you pictures. Maybe she can send pictures of birds! I like birds and you can't see them while we're in the city."

"Jason…That's not such a bad idea," Shane said pulling out his cell phone and calling Mitchie.

* * *

"Hello?"

_Hey Mitchie, I know I just hung up with you but I realized that I never got your e-mail address…I thought I could send you my schedule for the next couple of interviews and shows._

Mitchie sat up and paused the movie much to Sierra's dislike.

"Yea, I can give it to you but I need yours too… I can send you videos of people at camp and maybe even help you with a little bit of Spanish so that if you and Rachel and I are ever in a room together I can talk to you without her knowing what it's about."

_Cool. Mine is ._

"Haha, C3Frontman? Really?"

_Yea. Nate's is C3Superman and Jason's is Birdsrock._

"Haha, why is Jason's different?"

_He wanted birds to be in his. We told him it was really uncool, but that's what he wanted. So what's yours?_

", my old one won't work on the school computers so I set it up the first day of classes."

_I like it. It reminds me of something…_

"It reminds me of this past summer…that's why I made it that way."

_That's what it is; it's the song I wrote about you. Well, your voice anyway._

"Right, well, I'm getting the stink eye so I have to go."

_Ok. I'll talk to you later. Hasta luego._

"Good, you've been practicing."

_I'm still trying to figure out what you asked me earlier._

"I'll e-mail it to you so you can translate it easier. Bye."

_Bye Mitchie._

Mitchie pressed end and turned off her cell phone. _No more interruptions tonight. Just me, Sierra, and Leonardo Decaprio.

* * *

_

**SO? How was it? I want burtal honesty. I can handle it. LOTS OF COMENTS PLEASE! Lacey**


	29. Where She Was and Where She Wasn't

**Hey everyone. Sorry for the long wait. It's been a very long summer. Or maybe I should say short summer consitering I had barely enough time to write. It's even kinda late now. Anywho, there are a lot of songs in this but I think they are all Camp Rock or Jonas Brothers so it's all good. Hope you like it.

* * *

**

LAST TIME

_I'm still trying to figure out what you asked me earlier._

"I'll e-mail it to you so you can translate it easier. Bye."

_Bye Mitchie._

Mitchie pressed end and turned off her cell phone. _No more interruptions tonight. Just me, Sierra, and Leonardo DeCaprio._

* * *

**NOW**

"Shane!"

Shane woke with a start. He had not even realized he had fallen asleep. He had been on Mitchie's MyFace looking at pictures and all of a sudden he was being shaken awake by Nate.

"What?"

"Man, we have dress rehearsal in fifteen minutes you have to get up," Jason urged.

"I'm up, I'm up," Shane said, standing up lazily and following the other two out of the tour bus, "George," he said spotting the man standing outside the bus with a McGonald's cup in his hand, "where are we today?"

"The windy city of Chicago," George replied handing Shane the cup which contained orange juice, "You have dress rehearsal now, then Stevie at ten, then you have a signing at about two and then there are no planned activities until a final run through at around six. The show starts at seven. We are here for about three or four days then off to Wisconsin."

"Great."

The boys headed to the stadium to see fans already lining up outside.

_Wow those are some dedicated fans._

"Hey George," Nate called as they entered the stadium dressing rooms, "Can we get those dedicated fans something to eat and a couple keep sakes? They are going to be sitting there awhile."

George pulled out his cell phone and made a couple calls and also grabbed a few t-shirts with the Connect Three logo on them and headed back out to the fans.

That was Nate, always looking out for the fans. He never seemed to have a selfish moment.

The boys rehearsed for an hour and then headed over to channel 6 for their interview with Stevie. The drive was quick and they were soon in hair and make up. Shane pulled out his phone.

_Haven't talked to Mitchie all day. I should say good morning at least._

Shane pulled up Mitchie's number and texted:

_Good Morning_

He waited while the make-up people messed with his face.

_She isn't texting back; maybe she's still sleeping or something. I'll call her after the show._

Shane slipped his cell phone back into his pocket and allowed the hair people to comb and style it for him.

'_I'm falling even more in love with you, letting go of all I've held onto. I'm standing here until you make me move. I'm hanging by a moment here with you'_

Nate pulled out his cell phone and looked at it.

"Hello?... Oh hey…I'm doing terrific, and yourself?... They're doing good…No, I haven't talked to her since last night. Is everything ok?... Let me ask Shane."

Nate turned to Shane.

"Have you heard from Mitchie today?"

"No," Shane answered, "but she's probably still asleep or something. She had a friend sleeping over."

"Shane says she's probably still asleep or something. He says that she had a sleepover last night… So did I…We're actually going on the Stevie show in about five minutes… of course it's live…alright well I'll let you go. Say hello to Alicia for me…bye."

Jason had been the first one ready for the show and came out of the dressing room armed with a camera.

"Hey guys," Jason said in a loud voice.

"Hey Jason, what's with the camera?" Nate asked.

"I thought we should start a TeenTube for the band."

"That sounds cool," Shane said, "Hey fans we are in Chicago headed out to the Stevie stage. We're gonna answer some fan questions and sing a little."

"We hope you are coming to a show on the tour and we hope to see you soon," Nate commented to the camera.

"And…we're clear," Jason smiled, "I just love being behind the camera."

Nate laughed and dragged his band mates towards the stage.

"Now please welcome to the stage Nate, Jason, and Shane; the hottest band in the continental U.S., Connect 3."

* * *

"Mitchie, wake up."

"What? It's only eight in the morning; do we really need to get up THIS early?"

"Mitchie, your mom is taking us to the mall. Get up and get dressed!" Sierra practically yelled in Mitchie's ear.

"Did you say mall?" Mitchie perked up.

"Yea, your mom wants to get you some new clothes for school jam sessions and I need something for the Connect 3 concert."

"The concert isn't for another two and a half months."

"I still need new clothes since for school."

"Ok," Mitchie said, lazily getting out of bed and heading for the kitchen.

When she and Sierra entered, the news was on and Mrs. Torres had made an egg casserole for the girls' breakfast. Mitchie grabbed a cup of orange juice as she and Sierra sat down to eat and listen to the morning show.

"_Now please welcome to the stage Nate, Jason, and Shane; the hottest band in the continental U.S., Connect 3," _the television announcer was saying.

"Oh Connect 3! Hey Mrs. Torres, can we turn it up?" Sierra asked.

Connie turned up the volume as Jason was walking onto the stage and greeting Stevie.

"_Welcome to the Stevie Show. We are really excited to have Connect 3 with us today," _Stevie said, as the five of them took seats on sofas that we on the stage.

"_Thank you for having us,"_ Nate replied in a business casual way.

_That's so Nate. He's so polite. Wow… Shane looks so good in those white skinny jeans._

* * *

"So, how do you three like the Windy City?" Stevie inquired.

"We haven't really gotten to see much of it yet," Shane replied, "We had a rehearsal this morning and then came hear, but I have to say we have some pretty dedicated fans here."

"How do you mean?"

"There were already like ten girls at the stadium when we got there this morning," Jason answered.

_I wish Mitchie was one of those girls…Keep focus, Shane you don't want to say something funny during the interview._

"I hear you are coming out with a new album soon. Is there any particular song you are eager for your fans to hear or any favorites?"

"I really, really like Play My Music," Jason commented, "Shane wrote it over the summer on our time off and it really hit the passion and drive of the band. We really want to be playing music and it's all I really want to do."

"My favorite song would have to be Hello Beautiful," Nate explained, "I wrote it awhile ago when I had a crush on a girl. I was on the road and she was back in California."

"Oh, do you still like her? Do you keep in contact?" Stevie begged for the information.

"I don't like her, like her. She and I are good friends and right now with traveling and everything I'm ok with the relationship we have. We still talk, but not as much. She has school and I have work so it's hard to keep in contact all the time."

_Alicia…right? Wait a second…how come he didn't tell me he was over her? He has to like some one else if he has slowed contact with her because he's always on the phone. Or…is he messing with Stevie because he has a better relationship with her that I don't know of and he is trying to keep it secret? Hmmm…_

"Shane, what about you?"

"What?"

"What's your favorite song?"

"Um…My favorite song on the album would have to be…Gotta Find You."

"Does it have any special meaning?" Stevie questioned.

* * *

"_Yea. It's about a girl…actually about her voice more than her I guess."_

"That's my song. That's the song he wrote for me," Mitchie hissed into Sierra's ear.

"I know. Maybe we get to hear a little of it today."

"I'm not so sure, but it would be cool if we did."

* * *

"Ooo it sounds really interesting. Is this girl special to you?" Stevie asked.

"Yea, she is an amazing girl and a great friend."

"Are you going to tell us who she is?"

_I wish I could…oh man I miss her._

"We aren't here to talk about the people in our lives. We're here to talk about our music," Nate cut in.

"Speaking of your music, after this commercial break the boys will be playing two of the new songs on their album. Don't go away," Stevie said as the crowd cheered and they went to a commercial break.

"Thanks," Shane said to Nate under his breath.

Nate nodded and pulled out his cell phone as they headed over to the set up.

_Is it Alicia or mystery girl? I wonder if Mitchie's watching._

"What songs are we doing?" Jason asked coming up to Shane.

"Which ones did you have in mind?"

"How about Play My Music and Shane's solo?" Nate suggested.

"I'm up for that," Jason commented.

"Let me just check with Mitchie," Shane said pulling out his phone.

_Mitchie-_

_I hope you're watching Stevie this morning. I'm singing your song. Hope you're ok._

_-Shane_

Shane waited. Everyone was taking their places and Shane realized that he had no more time to wait to hear back from Mitchie. He stuffed his phone in his pocket and took his place with Nate and Jason.

* * *

"_Speaking of your music, after this commercial break the boys will be playing two of the new songs on their album. Don't go away."_

"Did you see what Nate did?" Mitchie asked Sierra.

"Did he just avoid answering a question? That's not like Nate at all."

"Maybe he's just trying to keep Shane focused," Mrs. Torres suggested.

"Maybe," Mitchie considered.

"_And…we're back with teen sensation Connect 3."_

"_So we're gonna play somethin' new," Shane said into the mic, "let us know what you think."_

"_Turn on that radio, as loud as it can go. Wanna dance until my feet can't feel the ground. Say goodbye to all my fears, one good song and they disappear, and nothing in the world can bring me down._

_"Hand clapping, hip shaking, heart breaking, there's no faking what you feel when you're right at home, yeah._

_"Music's in my soul. I can hear it every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go, no, no. I just want to play my music. Woo._

_"Got my six string on my back. Don't need anything but that. Everything I want is here with me. So forget that fancy car, I don't need to go that far. What's driving me is following my dreams, yeah._

_"Hand clapping, hip shaking, heart breaking, there's no faking what you feel when you're right at home, yeah._

_"Music's in my soul. I can hear it every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go, no, no. I just want to play my music. I just want to play my music._

_"Can't imagine what it'd be like, without the sounds of all my heroes singing all my favorite songs, so I can sing along._

_"Music's in my soul. I can hear it every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go, no, no. I just want to play my music._

_"Music's in my soul. I can hear it every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go, no, no. I just want to play my music all night long."_

* * *

"This next song was written for a very special girl with a very beautiful voice," Shane introduced shakily.

Nate and Jason took their places with the back up band and turned off their microphones.

_Every time I think I'm closer to the heart, of what it means to know just who I am, I think I finally found a better place to start. No one ever seems to understand. I need to try to get to where you are. Could it be you're not that far?_

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you, I gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, I gotta find you. Oh yeah. Yeah._

_You're the remedy I'm searching hard to find, to fix the puzzle that I see inside, painting all my dreams the color of your smile. When I find you it will be alright. I need to try to get to where you are. Could it be you're not that far?_

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you, I gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, I gotta find you._

_Been feeling lost, can't find the words to say. Spending all my time stuck in yesterday, cause where you are is where I wanna be. Oh next to you and you next to me. Oh, I need to find you. Yeah._

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you, gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, I gotta find you._

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you, gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, gotta find you. Yeah. Gotta find you._

_"I hope you're listening. I miss your voice."_

It was barely said as a whisper and anyone sitting in the audience would not know what he had said, but Mitchie knew and that's all he cared about.

_

* * *

_

Sierra sat at the table stunned.

"Sierra," Mitchie tried, waving her hand in front of Sierra's face, "Anybody home?"

Mitchie laughed, but in her head she was as high as a kite.

_He misses my voice. He wants me to be in his life and listening to everything he says. He's so sweet. Wow, Sierra's really gone._

"Girls are you ready to go to the mall?" Mrs. Torres asked turning off the television.

"Yea, let me just grab my cell phone and my purse," Mitchie replied, "Come on Sierra."

Sierra got up, mouth still open and followed Mitchie out into the living room where Mitchie's phone was sitting on the coffee table.

"Sierra, snap out of it. Eventually I'm gonna be the famous one and what are you going to do then? Stare at me and freak out when I say hi to you from the stage?"

"No. I would do no such thing," Sierra retorted taking her out of her dreamy state.

"Come on, let's go."

Mitchie grabbed her phone and headed out to her mom's van with Sierra close behind her. The mall was about an hour away and Mitchie and Sierra sang along with music in the car all the way there. Mrs. Torres joined in occasionally until her phone started to ring. Then she turned down the music and picked up the call.

"Hello? Hi Rachel. What's up? Yea, we'll pick you guys up tomorrow before church. I have to make breakfast anyway. Anyone new coming with this week? Ok, I'll let her know. I'm headed to the mall is there anything anyone needs? A straightener, hair stuff for Abby and green nail polish. Ok. Well I'll talk to you later, bye."

"Rachel wants us to pick up a couple things for her," Mrs. Torres informed Mitchie and Sierra as she pulled into a parking spot.

Sierra and Mitchie were eager to go shopping and after telling the girls to make sure to stick together, Connie went off to get her own shopping done. This left the girls with total freedom and time to catch up.

"Where do you want to start?" Mitchie asked Sierra.

"Delia's has a jeans sale going on. We could start there considering it's right here."

"Sounds good," Mitchie agreed following Sierra into the store.

The girls shopped for about three hours and then Connie called Sierra about where to meet for lunch. After a light lunch, the girls went out to the car and dropped off their purchases and went back into the mall for round two. Connie was with them this time and was insistent on getting Mitchie a nice dress for going out and dances and such. Mitchie was not opposed to the idea, but she thought it was a waste because her school did not have homecoming or anything of the sort.

_This one would make Shane die. I love the green. It's the perfect shade for my skin tone. I hope it fits._

Mitchie tried on the knee length dress. It looked like something Hannah Montana had worn to a premier recently and it looked amazing on Mitchie.

"Are you getting it?" Sierra asked the minute they were both out of the dressing room and standing in front of the full length mirror.

"I think. Mom can I get this?"

"Yes. It's priced pretty decently. If you want to look at any other ones while we're here, Brown is thinking about taking some choice students to an awards show this winter. You might want to have something if he picks you."

"You're so lucky you get to do cool things like that at school," Sierra enthused.

"Did Mitchie tell you that Brown is even giving her recording time in a private studio during her voice lessons?"

"Mitchie, that's awesome! How come you didn't tell me?"

"I didn't really think it was that big of a deal to be honest."

"That's a really big deal. When does your demo come out? I want a copy."

"Sierra, that's going way too far. He's recording them so I can see how much I improve. I only have private lessons with him because he really sees something in me that I don't. Sure my voice is good and I would love the chance to sing in front of a crowd for a living some day, but I don't see it coming true."

"Mitchie stop kidding yourself," Connie piped up, "You have a wonderful voice and it will get you far."

Mitchie smiled as she went back into the dressing room to try on a couple more dresses and some black slacks.

As the day came to an end, the girls headed out to the car with their purchases laughing and enjoying each other's company. They got in and started driving.

_That's funny, no word from Caitlyn or Shane all day. I guess we all had a busy schedule. But it's weird that I didn't even get a text from Nate. He at least checks in everyday._

* * *

_Why isn't Mitchie answering her gosh darn phone! She hasn't called all day. Not even a simple text as to what she's up to. There has to be something wrong. I just know it. I did something and I don't even know what it was. Nate's been texting all day so it can't be that we don't have service here. _

_Who has he been texting? Alicia??? His sister??? Jason??? No, Jason hasn't been texting at all today. Caitlyn??? Maybe that's why Mitchie isn't answering my texts; she's interested in Nate, not me. _

_Come on Shane, do you really believe Nate would go behind your back like that? The two issues cannot be connected at all. You're just over reacting because even after you said something about her on national television she hasn't called. Maybe she didn't even get a chance to see it. Maybe she was sleeping. Her phone could have died or something._

Shane continued to reason with himself as he slipped his phone into his pocket and followed Nate and Jason onto the stage for their first concert in Chicago.

"Hello Chicago!" Nate yelled into the microphone.

"We are so happy to be here in Chi-town and we are even more excited that you are all her to join us," Jason said into his microphone.

"How about we get started off with something up beat," Shane suggested as he did every concert.

_I make the most of all this stress. I try to live without regrets, but I'm about to break a sweat. I'm freakin' out._

_It's like a poison in my brain. It's like a fog that blurs the sane. It's like a vine you can't untangle. I'm freakin' out._

_Every time I turn around, something don't feel right._

_Just might be paranoid. I'm avoiding the lines, cause they just might split. Can someone stop the noise? I don't know what it is, but I just don't fit. I'm paranoid  
Yeah!_

_I take the necessary steps, to get some air in to my chest. I'm taking all the doctor's meds. I'm still freakin' out._

_That's why my ex is still my ex. I never trust a word she says. I'm running all the background checks, and she's freakin' out._

_Every time I turn around, something's just not right._

_Just might be paranoid. I'm avoiding the lines, cause they just might split. Can someone stop the noise? I don't know what it is, but I just don't fit. Consider me destroyed (consider me destroyed). I don't know how to act, cause I lost my head.  
I must be paranoid (must be paranoid). And I never thought it would come this. I'm paranoid_

_Stuck in a room of staring faces. Caught in a nightmare, can't wake up. If you hear my cry, running through the streets, I'm about to freak, come and rescue me._

_Just might be paranoid, yeah (might be paranoid). I'm avoiding the lines, cause they just might split. Can someone stop the noise? (Someone stop the noise). I don't know what it is, but I just don't fit. Consider me destroyed (consider me destroyed). I don't know how to act, cause I lost my head. I must be paranoid (must be paranoid). I never thought it would come to this, I'm paranoid._

The crowd cheered loudly. The boys took in the energy that the crowd was reradiating and ran around dancing as the sang. The concert was going really well and then it was solo time. Shane had decided he should sing the song he wrote for Mitchie at every concert.

"This is a song I wrote this summer about a person who changed my life in so many ways. I didn't know it at the time, but she has renewed my love for music and for all of you so you have her to thank for me sitting on this stool right now."

The crowd cheered even louder as Shane was handed a acoustic guitar.

_Every time I think I'm closer to the heart, of what it means to know just who I am, I think I finally found a better place to start. No one ever seems to understand. I need to try to get to where you are. Could it be you're not that far?_

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you, I gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, I gotta find you. Oh yeah. Yeah._

_You're the remedy I'm searching hard to find, to fix the puzzle that I see inside, painting all my dreams the color of your smile. When I find you it will be alright. I need to try to get to where you are. Could it be you're not that far?_

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you, I gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, I gotta find you._

_Been feeling lost, can't find the words to say. Spending all my time stuck in yesterday, cause where you are is where I wanna be. Oh next to you and you next to me. Oh, I need to find you. Yeah._

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you, gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, I gotta find you._

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you, gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, gotta find you. Yeah. Gotta find you._

The crowd abounded in screams.

"Thank you," Shane said getting off the stool and heading back stage to give way for Nate.

"This is a little song I wrote about a friend of mine. It'll be on the new CD. I hope you like it."

_She walks away. Colors fade to gray. Every precious moment's now a waste. She hits the gas hoping it would pass. The red lights starts to flash, it's time to wait._

_And black keys never looked so beautiful, and a perfect rainbow never seemed so dull. And the lights out never had this bright a glow, and the black keys; showing me a world I never knew, no. A world I never knew._

_She hates the sun cause it proves she's not alone, and the world doesn't revolve around her soul. She loves the sky cause it validates her pride. Never lets them know when she is wrong._

_And black keys never looked so beautiful, and a perfect rainbow never seemed so dull. And the lights out never had this bright a glow, and the black keys; showing me a world I never knew, no. Yeah. And the walls are closing in._

_Don't let them get inside of your head. Don't let them get inside of your head. Don't let them get inside of your head. Don't let them inside._

_Cause black keys never looked so beautiful, and a perfect rainbow never seemed so dull. And the lights out never had this bright a glow, and the black keys; showing me a world I never knew. Don't let them get (Don't let them get) inside of your head (No). Don't let them get inside of your head. Don't let them get (Don't let them get) inside of your head.  
Don't let them get (No) inside of your head. Sometimes you'll find it's better black and white._

Shane and Jason came up and joined him by the piano with stools to sing another ballad before going back for their finale.

_Pick up all your tears. Throw em in your back seat. Leave without a second glance. Somehow I'm to blame. For this never-ending racetrack you call life._

_So turn right. Into my arms. Turn right. You won't be alone. You might fall off this track sometime. Hope to see you on the finish line._

_You're driving all your friends out. You just be, you cannot follow. And soon you will be on your own. Somehow I'm to blame. For this never-ending racetrack you call life._

_So turn right. Into my arms. Turn right. You won't be alone. You might fall off this track sometime. Hope to see you on the finish line._

_I did all I could. I gave everything. But you had to go your way. And that road was not for me._

_So turn right. Into my arms. Turn right. You won't be alone. You might fall off this track sometimes. Hope to see you on the finish line._

The crowd applauded. The boys got up from the stools and grabbed their electric guitars and Nate went back to the drum set for the final song of the night.

_Turn on that radio, as loud as it can go. Wanna dance until my feet can't feel the ground. Say goodbye to all my fears, one good song and they disappear, and nothing in the world can bring me down._

_Hand clapping, hip shaking, heart breaking, there's no faking what you feel when you're right at home, yeah._

_Music's in my soul. I can hear it every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go, no, no. I just want to play my music. Woo._

_Got my six string on my back. Don't need anything but that. Everything I want is here with me. So forget that fancy car, I don't need to go that far. What's driving me is following my dreams, yeah._

_Hand clapping, hip shaking, heart breaking, there's no faking what you feel when you're right at home, yeah._

_Music's in my soul. I can hear it every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go, no, no. I just want to play my music. I just want to play my music._

_Can't imagine what it'd be like, without the sounds of all my heroes singing all my favorite songs, so I can sing along._

_Music's in my soul. I can hear it every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go, no, no. I just want to play my music._

_Music's in my soul. I can hear it every day and every night. It's the one thing on my mind. Music's got control and I'm never letting go, no, no. I just want to play my music all night long._

Nate, Shane, and Jason bowed as the crowd screamed. They headed off stage to find Tess looking slightly upset.

Nate immediately went to go comfort her and Shane took off for the dressing rooms. He pulled out his phone as he went.

_Still no word from Mitchie. I hope she's ok. Maybe I could call Caitlyn and see what's up._

Shane pulled up Caitlyn's number and waited patiently for her to answer.

_Hello?_

"Caitlyn. It's Shane. I was wondering if you had talked to Mitchie at all today."

_No. She's at home for the weekend. Abby said that Rachel talked to her mom this morning though._

"So you haven't heard from her?"

_Sorry I haven't. Why? She's not answering her phone?"_

"Not her phone or her texts or what I said this morning on the Stevie Show."

_I was wondering who you were referring to. Don't worry. Her phone's probably dead or something. Maybe she's out with her mom and forgot to turn it on._

"I don't know. It was on at four in the morning."

_Then it probably is dead, Shane. Anywho, I have to go. Abigail is trying to drag me to church tomorrow and if I don't get any sleep I'll snore in the pew._

Shane laughed.

"Ok. I'll let you go. If you hear anything call me."

_Will do. Good night._

"Good night," Shane said hanging up.

_

* * *

_

**So? Good or bad? Please leave me your comments either way. I love your imput. Lacey**


	30. Superstar

**It's finally here! My next chapter! Sorry guys I have so much going on with school that I haven't been able to update recently. The songs in this chapter aren't mine. If you want the names PM me and I'll tell you. Right now there are too many to list. Please enjoy ~Lacey~**

* * *

LAST TIME

_Then it probably is dead, Shane. Anywho, I have to go. Abigail is trying to drag me to church tomorrow and if I don't get any sleep I'll snore in the pew._

Shane laughed.

"Ok. I'll let you go. If you hear anything call me."

_Will do. Good night._

"Good night," Shane said hanging up.

**NOW**

Mitchie and Sierra left the car and brought in all there bags. Mitchie heard the phone ring through the house.

"Mitchie, it's for you!" Connie shouted up the stairs.

Mitchie ran down the stairs, got the phone and put it to her ear.

"Hello?"

_Mitchie! You're alive,_ Caitlyn enthused into the phone.

"Caitlyn! Why wouldn't I be?"

_You haven't answered a single phone call all day! Normally you answer your text messages at least, but nothing… Shane has called me twice. I think he's worried. I was too when I heard you hadn't called him back after four hours._

"That's funny. I had my phone with me all day. It didn't ring once," Mitchie said, thinking out loud.

Mitchie walked back up the stairs with the phone looking for her purse.

"Sierra have you seen my purse?" Mitchie asked, as she walked back into her room with the phone still to her ear.

"It's over by your desk," Sierra said, folding up her new dark wash skinny jeans and placing them in her suitcase.

"Thanks," Mitchie said, going to the place Sierra had mentioned.

_Maybe you had it on vibrate or something,_ Caitlyn commented.

"I never put it on vibrate. It's either on or off," Mitchie mumbled into the depths of her handbag.

Mitchie looked through her rediscovered purse and pulled out her cell phone. She pressed the middle button on the MP3 function of the phone. It did not light up like it would when it is on. She pressed the power button and waited.

"Oops…"

"What?" Sierra and Caitlyn asked simultaneously.

"It was off… all day…" Mitchie trailed off.

Sierra started laughing and Caitlyn started scolding Mitchie.

_Mitchie Torres! Do you have any idea what you are putting Shane though right now? _Caitlyn said, speaking quite a bit on the louder side, _He's probably not sleeping very well because you aren't talking to him. He's going to think something happened or that you are mad at him again or something._

"I told him I was having a sleepover with Sierra," Mitchie defended herself, "He didn't think I was just going to hang around at the house all day and wait for him to text, did he? He had a show today anyway so how was he even going to have time to text. Tess gave me his schedule and he had the interview this morning."

_You saw that? Did you hear the thing Shane said at the end of the song? Why didn't you call him after that? You really should call him. He called me after his show tonight to ask if I had talked to you. He's really freaked out. _Caitlyn ranted on.

Guilt started to set in. Mitchie collapsed into the chair next to her desk.

"I didn't mean to do that to you or to him. I'm fine; I'll be back at school tomorrow."

_Ok. I'll let you go because I'm guessing you're still with Sierra. That's her name right?_ Caitlyn asked.

"Yea. She'll be here until after church tomorrow."

_Cool. Maybe she can stay a little longer so that I get to know her a little before the concert._

"That would be cool. I'm going to go call Shane, send him an e-mail and a text and hope that fixes his anxiety about what's happening with me."

_Ok. Bye Mitchie._

"See you tomorrow Caitlyn."

Mitchie heard a click and pressed the "end" button on the phone.

"They were pretty worried weren't they," Sierra commented, looking over Mitchie's shoulder to see "42 text messages" on the screen of Mitchie's cell phone.

"Yea."

"It's good to know that you aren't alone even if we are apart," Sierra thought aloud.

"Did you really think that they were just friends who would forget about me when I wasn't around?"

"No. I just never really thought about it I guess. You and I were all the time friends, but the only everyday friend I have right now is John's sister."

"You know, even if I'm not in the same state, I'll always be there for you and you can always call me."

"I know. Thanks for the reminder," Sierra said, giving Mitchie a hug.

Mitchie got up and went to her night stand searching for her camera. When she found it, she left the room and headed into the music room. Sierra followed in a state of confusion.

"What are you doing?" Sierra asked.

"We are going to make a video for Shane," Mitchie replied, smiling.

"You mean you and I are going to do a web show for the Shane Gray?" Sierra clarified, slightly awestruck.

"In a manner of speaking, yes," Mitchie replied.

Sierra jumped in the air with excitement and clapped her hands together.

"What do you want to talk about in the webcast?" Sierra asked.

"I was thinking we could lip-sync to a Connect 3 song and then just let him know what's going on in my life. Maybe give him a Spanish lesson too."

"A Spanish lesson?"

"I told Rachel that the reason I was close with Shane was because I was his Spanish tutor."

"Oh, now I get that whole thing at your school last night."

Mitchie set the camera on the piano and pressed "record", grabbed the piano bench and moved it against the picture window. Sierra joined her there, and they began their video.

"Hi Shane! Hi Jason and Nate!" Mitchie began.

"Hello," Sierra waved at the camera.

"We thought we would put this together to say sorry for not calling all day long," Mitchie explained.

"Mitchie thought that you would enjoy seeing us act really silly and maybe a Spanish lesson wouldn't be such a bad idea," Sierra added.

Mitchie laughed at the way Sierra explained the video's motives and agendas. Then she decided to introduce the guys to Sierra. They had talked to her and Mitchie had told them about her, but they had never seen her.

"So, this is the famous Sierra that I talk about a lot. We've been friends forever and she's only here for this weekend."

"Yep," Sierra verified.

"What's up with you? I have yet to read all 40 texts I got today so let's see what we have here," Mitchie said pulling out her phone.

The first text said _Good Morning._

Mitchie giggled and looked at the camera "Good Night Shane. I wish I had gotten this earlier. It would have been a better wake up call than what I got."

Mitchie read the next text and let Sierra answer it.

"Yes, Shane. Mitchie did get to see you on the Stevie show this morning. Don't worry she saw the whole thing."

"I really liked the comment after Gotta Find You. It was really sweet."

"So let's tell the boys what they missed by your little cell phone glitch," Sierra prompted.

"We went shopping!" Mitchie gushed.

"We bought so much stuff. I'll never be able to pick what to wear to the concert next month," Sierra commented, now excited with the topic of conversation.

"She really can't wait for your concert in Tennessee. It's all she's been talking about."

The girls continued talking into the camera for about ten minutes then Mitchie set up a mock Connect 3 music video. She and Sierra lip-synced to a song as they walked around the house and even hung out in Mitchie's back yard for a little while.

Mitchie texted Shane numerous times during filming and let him know she was sorry and that she would call him when she could.

They worked on the webcast late into the night and Sierra fell asleep around two in the morning. Mitchie had finally finished editing the video and had added little things on the end for Shane. She had also filmed herself repeating what she had said the day before on the phone so that he could work out what she had said.

* * *

Shane woke up to a buzzing on his side. He had fallen into an uneasy sleep with his cell phone in his hand. Although the hotel bed was beyond comfortable, he was worried about Mitchie. At some point he had drifted off for a little while.

_Who is calling at three in the morning?_

Now he was up. He pulled his phone from his side and read the caller ID.

_Mitchie._

_Finally. This means that she's alright. She's not mad at me and she isn't ignoring me._

"Hello," Shane answered.

_Hey. Sorry did I wake you?_ Mitchie said back.

"Don't worry about it. I'm just glad to know you're ok. You really scared me."

_Sorry. I do feel really guilty about that. I turned off my phone after we talked on Friday because I was going to bed and in all the excitement of the day I forgot to turn it back on._

"It's fine. I'm just glad you're ok," Shane said in relief.

_Is there anyway I can make it up to you?_

"Tell me what you said in Spanish," Shane begged.

_Nope. You have to figure that one out on your own pop star._

"Can you at least say it again?"

_Check your e-mail. I made you a video._

"Oh, really" Shane said with excitement.

_Yea, Sierra and I made about a thirty minute video for you and the guys. Well, mostly for you. Some parts they would probably like to see._

"Ok."

Shane got up from the bed and walked quietly over to the table near the door, careful not to wake the sleeping Nate in the bed next to his. He found his lap-top and turned it on.

"Is there sound?"

_Yea. Pretty much the whole thing needs sound._

"Ok. Then I'll need to find my head phones. Nate is sleeping."

_Why don't you just wait until tomorrow morning then? I didn't realize how early it was getting. You're in Chicago, right?_

"Yea. We're finally in the same time zone and you forgot to turn your phone on."

_I already said I was sorry about that._

"I know. It just stinks because I actually would have liked a little distraction from the sad looking Tess that follows us everywhere."

_Oh, shoot, Tess._

"What? I thought you were still mad at her. I am."

_I am, but there's more to it. I know this will sound weird because I'm still mad at her about the whole kissing you thing, but she needed some one to talk to and I feel like I need to be there for her right now. She really doesn't have any friends and she needs a girl to talk to right now._

"You're right. It does sound weird, but I guess everyone needs someone to talk to and Nate isn't always there for her."

_Yea, Nate said she was really struggling because she made a mistake on your part. She called and we talked it out. I'm still upset that she did it, but she needs me right now and I'm sure she could use some friends around her too. This whole thing isn't even about you and me._

"Who is it about then?"

_She's having family problems. She can't seem to get her mom's attention for more than two minutes._

"Oh. I didn't know," Shane said, starting to regret the way he had been treating Tess over the last week.

_I didn't either until Friday night. Don't tell her I told you, but ease up on the hating her thing, ok?_

"Ok."

Shane opened the e-mail and plugged in his head phones. He put one in his ear and left the other one hanging out so he could keep talking to Mitchie. He laughed at just the right times and smiled when she gave him a little Spanish instruction.

Mitchie yawned at the other end of the phone.

"I guess it's time to go to sleep, huh?"

_Yea. I have church with Mom, Dad, Sierra, Abby, Barron, Sander, and Rachel tomorrow._

"I'll let you go then."

_Ok._

"Good night."

_Gnight._

Shane hung up the phone and repeatedly watched Mitchie's video with Sierra over and over and over again until he had it memorized. He read the sentences from their conversation in Spanish and tried to translate them too.

Finally he realized that he needed to go to sleep so that he would be awake during early morning rehearsal the next day and went to bed.

* * *

'_Hey you, don't let 'em see you frown, Come on turn it upside down. Don't ever quit, get up, get up. When life, puts you to the test, there's nothing better than your best. Show 'em what you got, you got a lot. Show 'em what you got, get up, get up. Get up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up.'_

Mitchie woke up and turned off her alarm clock.

_Is it really time to get up? Couldn't I just lay here for another hour and sleep?_

Mitchie fought with herself about getting up, but finally was persuaded by the scent of cinnamon coming up into her room. She left her bed and followed the scent down the stairs to the kitchen.

There sat her mother and father already dressed for church and having French toast.

"Good morning Honey," Connie said from the stove.

"Good morning, Mitchie," her father greeted.

"Morning," Mitchie said, lifting her head and giving her parents a weak smile.

"Do you mind waking Sierra? I think she's still in bed. It's slightly out of character for her, but you two were up pretty late last night," Mrs. Torres mentioned.

"Sure," Mitchie said, heading back up the stairs to get her sleeping friend.

Two hours later the girls were dressed and sitting in the van with Mrs. Torres. Mitchie's father would meet them at church after the campers had been picked up. The trip went quick and soon everyone was piled in the car and headed to church. To Mitchie's surprise Caitlyn had joined them and the van was almost full.

When they reached the church, Mitchie looked out the window to see Ana, Kelly, and Lea in a little group by the front doors. They seemed to be in deep conversation about something judging from Kelly's furrowed brow.

Everyone piled out of Connie's van and headed for the doors. Lea waved to Mitchie and Abigail as the teens headed into the church lead by Connie and Rachel.

Inside, Mitchie spotted Adam talking with Tom, and James. Tom stood up a little straighter as the girls walked by and into the sanctuary. This went unnoticed by everyone but Rachel. She did not think twice about it; it is not unusual for people to act strange around famous people.

Mr. Torres waved the group over to two rows of pews near the back and everyone took a seat. Mitchie end up between Sierra and Abigail.

_Perfect. I'm between the one who won't let me get off task and the queen of passing notes. This is going to be a good sermon._

Mitchie pulled out her Bible and turned it to the pages that the preacher was speaking on. She finished reading the passage and looked around.

The church had filled up and she could see the families of all the people in the church. Thomas was sitting with his mother and father along with a boy that looked like it could be his older brother and a girl that could have been his sister. In front of them sat Sarah with her parents, Katie, Ryan and a boy and girl that looked like they could be related to her.

_Where are Katie and Ryan's parents? Maybe they're adopted or foster children. They don't fit with Sarah's family. Sarah's family is fair skinned and Katie is African American looking and Ryan is Asian._

Mitchie continued her scan of the crowd and saw Lea sitting with her parents and Kelly sitting next to her with Kelly's parents on the other end of the pew.

_They must be close. Not family, they look nothing alike, but maybe best friends. That's funny I would have placed Kelly with Sarah. The way that Kelly followed Sarah it would have made sense._

Mitchie finished her scan seeing Ana with her family and Evan with his.

_Ana has a big family; four kids. Wow. Evan is a Hispanic-Asian? I would never have gotten that from his looks. The Asian part is easy, but the Hispanic part is harder to see. Aw…his little brother is so adorable he can't sit still._

A worship band got onto the stage and lead in singing for about ten minutes and then the preacher came up and gave the sermon.

During the sermon Abigail keeps throwing notes to Mitchie.

_Thomas is staring at you._

Mitchie looked at Abigail and shook her head. Then she looked over at where Thomas was sitting. Sure enough he was looking in the direction of the Camp Rock High students, but it was not Mitchie he was staring at.

_Nope. He's definitely staring at you. It wouldn't even matter if he was staring at me because I'm not staring back. My eyes are on the pop star in Chicago._

Mitchie handed the note back to Abigail and continued to listen to the sermon. The piece of paper landed on Mitchie's bible again.

_Aww that's cute. I don't know…maybe you're right. He could be looking at me. Or it could be that he's staring at my sister. She kind of sticks out._

Mitchie smiled and put the piece of paper away.

After the sermon, everyone headed to the youth room for Sunday school, but no one seemed to want to pay attention to Pastor Moe that morning.

Sarah was making googly eyes at Evan, Ryan was texting some one, James was passing notes with Katie, Kelly was off in her own world, Adam must have left because he was nowhere to be seen, and Lynn was trying to bring Kelly out of her spacing.

The Camp Rock High group were the best behaved of all the students in the room. They paid close attention to what Moe had to say, but Mitchie was fading fast.

_I shouldn't have stayed up that late with Shane. I should have just gone to bed and talked to him this morning instead. No. I needed to talk to him. He thought I was dead or hurt or something. Is my cell phone on? Did I put it on silent for church?_

Mitchie pulled her purse up to her chest and checked her phone. It was on vibrate much to her disbelief. She never used the vibrate setting because she never learned how it worked.

_Sierra's awesome. She must have known that I didn't want to miss another call from Shane. Oh. I have a new text message._

Mitchie opened the text.

_Shane!_

_Good Morning. Hope you're having fun at church. Nate says Caitlyn is even enjoying herself. Call me when you get home._

Mitchie smiled and sent a quick text back.

_Good Morning! Yea church is really interesting but I didn't sleep very much last night. I'll call you as soon as I'm out of Rachel's ear shot._

Mitchie put her phone back in her purse and tried to listen as Pastor Moe discussed modesty as the topic of the day.

As soon as the van reached the house, Mitchie was out the door, in the house, up the stairs and in her room. She had dialed Shane's number on her way up the stairs and shut the door just as it began to ring.

_Mitchie!_

"Hey. I'm home. Did you figure out what I was saying?"

_Yea, but it took a little help from Nate and Tess to get it completely._

"So you're getting a long with Tess?"

_Not exactly._

* * *

Shane woke up to an annoying beeping in his ear.

_Really? Did Nate really set an alarm clock for 6 am?_ _Can't I sleep for another hour?_

"Shane, get up," Nate said, dragging himself out of bed, "We have two hours until rehearsal and you stink."

"Thanks," Shane commented rolling out of bed and following Nate over to the table where he had left his laptop open.

"Dude, you're battery's dead."

"Oops. I guess I was out of it when I went to sleep last night."

"Wait a second… You and I went to bed at the same time."

"Mitchie finally called. She wanted me to see something on the internet so I had to log on."

"Oh. She's ok right? I mean no one heard a word from her yesterday."

"Yea, she's fine. She forgot to turn her phone on."

"I see."

"Speaking of Mitchie, I need your help."

"With?"

"She said something in Spanish and I don't know what it means."

"Do you know what it was?" Nate asked.

"¿Dígame la verdad, es eso porqué Brown es grabación yo? ¿Conseguí un reparto de registro que no sabía sobre nuestro algo?"

"Wow. You memorized it?"

"I couldn't sleep."

Nate rolled his eyes at his friend and then pushed him towards the shower.

"So will you help me?" Shane begged as he was pushed into the bathroom.

"I'll see what I can do, but I might need some help."

"Tess speaks fluent Spanish right?"

"Yea, but I thought you were against Tess."

"I talked to Mitchie last night and I made a deal with her to be nicer to Tess. Don't tell Tess. I really don't want her to think I'm doing this just because I have to."

**Two Hours Later**

Nate, Shane, and Tess sat in a limo on the way to the venue, a sheet of paper on Shane's lap.

"Well she obviously mentions your uncle and this word means record," Nate said pointing.

"Dígame la verdad. Doesn't that mean tell me the truth?" Shane wondered aloud.

Shane wrote down the translation below a written copy of what Mitchie had said.

"I got it!" Tess exclaimed suddenly.

"Really? What does it say?" Shane urged.

"Tell me the truth, is that why Brown is recording me? Did I get a record deal that I didn't know about or something?"

"That's what she said? Brown didn't tell me he was recording her."

"Maybe you owe your uncle a call," Nate commented.

Just then the limo pulled up to the venue and everyone got out. There were flashes from every direction and reporters everywhere. Shane grabbed Tess's hand so that she wouldn't be separated from the band and they were rushed inside.

The boys rushed to the stage while Tess went in the direction of her mother's dressing room.

* * *

Tess walked down the narrow hallway to the door with a star and the name "Tyler" on it. She knocked.

"Come in," came a voice from inside.

Tess opened the door to see her mother sitting at the vanity with a lipstick tube in her hand. When Tess had entered her mother turned around with a smile.

"Good morning Tess. I was wondering when you were going to show up.

"Sorry Mom. Shane took me out for breakfast."

This wasn't a total lie. Shane had been present at breakfast, but Nate and Jason had been there as well. Tess had jumped at the chance when Shane, himself, had said he wanted her to be there.

"So have you talked over having him produce for you yet?"

"No."

"What are you waiting for? I didn't bring you on tour just to get you out of school and let you hang out with friends you know."

Tess nodded sadly, but this went unnoticed by TJ.

"You better kick it into gear or you'll be back at boarding school before you can say MTV Music Awards."

Tess nodded again and walked over to the couch in the corner. She pulled out her phone and texted Nate.

_At least he'll listen._

* * *

After going through the set twice and constantly being interrupted by Nate's phone, the boys gave up and ended their rehearsal early.

Nate headed for the dressing rooms; Jason went over to take care of some press with a reporter and Shane grabbed his phone and headed back stage.

_Time to see how my coolest uncle Brown is doing._

He dialed the number he had memorized at age three and waited for some one to answer.

_Hello._

"Hey Brown. It's Shane."

_Hello. To what do I owe this honor? A call from my favorite nephew._

"I was actually calling about Mitchie. She asked why you were recording her. Why are you recording her?"

_I thought that she would want to hear how much she progresses through the year…And I may have talked to a couple of talent scouts after final jam._

"Talent scouts!" Shane exclaimed, "What did they say? Do they like her voice? Why doesn't she know about this?"

_I didn't want to tell her incase her sound wasn't what they were looking for. I heard from a couple of them yesterday and I plan on telling her tomorrow. Please don't mention this to her. What triggered the conversation anyway?_

"She called and told me that she sang in front of the entire mess hall and I said something about her being on stage. Then she completely went off at me in rapid Spanish and I had to get help to translate what she said."

_I see. Well I can't tell you what they said because that' s Mitchie's news not mine, but I'm sure she'll tell you as soon as I tell her._

"Ok. Thanks Uncle Brown."

_It was good to hear from you. I'll let you get back to work._

"Ok. Bye."

_Goodbye Shane._

Almost immediately after Shane hung up with Brown his phone rang. He looked down at the caller ID and answered it quickly.

"Mitchie!"

_Hey. I'm home. Did you figure out what I was saying?_

"Yea, but it took a little help from Nate and Tess to get it completely."

_So you're getting a long with Tess?_

"Not exactly."

_Oh._

"What I mean is… it's not the same as it was before. It's slightly uncomfortable, but I'm dealing."

_Good. So what's the answer to my question?_

"He said he's recording you so that you can see your progress. I know nothing else. He said he had some other news but he wouldn't tell me."

_Bummer._

"I'm sure you'll find out in class tomorrow anyway."

_I just was hoping that you knew something I didn't._

"Sorry. I am as clueless as the next guy on this one."

_Well, I better go. Sierra's leaving right after lunch and Abby, Caitlyn, Barron, Sandler, and Rachel are over. I just wanted to call and let you know that I didn't forget…about my favorite Spanish student. __Practique tu español__ mucho__ esta semana__. Adios._

"I think I got that, but I'll talk to you later. Bye Mitchie."

Shane waited for Mitchie to hang up the phone. Then he shoved it back into his pocket.

_Where is Jason when I need him? A distraction would be really nice right now._

Shane walked quietly back to his dressing room, alone, and pulled out his laptop. He used his webcam and made a little video for Mitchie just like the one she had made for him. He told her about how tour was going and how much he couldn't wait until Thanksgiving because he would be in the area. Around that time, Nate showed up and asked what Shane was doing.

Shane shot up and stopped the recording.

"Nothing, nothing at all."

"Are you making a video?"

"Yea, but it's no big deal."

"Is it for Mitchie?"

Shane went a little red.

"Are you going to tell her how you feel?"

"I can't. I don't even know how I feel."

"Dude, everyone knows how you feel about her except you and her. That's really sad if you ask me."

"Well, I didn't."

Nate laughed.

"Do you want to say hi to Mitchie?"

"Sure and Caitlyn too?"

"Mitchie will probably share this with Caitlyn anyway."

"Sweet. Maybe you should speak in Spanish for part of it. You know, to make it _seem_ like you're actually practicing it."

"I _am_ practicing," Shane argued.

Nate rolled his eyes and took a seat next to Shane on the couch.

Shane pressed the record button and they recorded a little in Spanish and Nate talked about his favorite part of tour and how he couldn't wait to see Mitchie either.

Jason popped his head in a little while later and said hello to Mitchie, only to leave about three minutes later to take care of a press call to HTV (Hollywood TV).

Tess wandered in at one point, said hello to Mitchie, gave Shane and Nate a few pointers on Spanish and sent Mitchie a little Spanish message herself.

Shane finally ended the recording and sent it to Mitchie.

"So what spurred this little video?" Tess asked, not sure if she had the right to be asking when she was still on rock terms with Shane.

"Mitchie sent me one," Shane replied, in a kinder voice than he had been using with her all week.

"That's cool. Thanks for letting me be a part of it."

"Your welcome, I'm sure Mitchie would love to hear from you."

Tess smiled.

* * *

Mitchie pressed end and turned around to see Rachel walking into her room. It had been Abby who had come up, with a warning look which gave Mitchie a chance to hang up.

"Hey, Mitchie, do mind if I borrow you're music room for a couple of minutes? I'm feeling some inspiration and I need to put music to the words."

"Yea, sure," Mitchie replied.

"Girls, lunch!" Mrs. Torres called from the kitchen.

"I guess I'll have to wait until after lunch. Your mom said we weren't leaving until Sierra had to get to the train station."

Mitchie nodded and the three headed down the stairs.

After lunch Rachel retreated to Mitchie's music room to use the piano and Connie pulled out the board games.

"What do you guys want to play?" Mrs. Torres asked.

"Scrabble," Sierra suggested.

"Labyrinth," shouted Barron.

"Sorry," Sandler begged.

"Seen It," Abigail whined.

"What ever anyone else wants to play," Mitchie said with a shrug.

"Well you can't all play sorry or labyrinth. They're four person games," Mr. Torres pointed out as he headed out of the room.

"So I guess it's Seen It or Scrabble then," Mitchie concluded.

"How about we play one game of each," Sandler suggested.

Everyone agreed and headed towards the television set to start the first game. When everything was set up, Mitchie started the game.

The first person to go was Abigail. She had to figure out what was missing in a scene. Sierra got it first and got the points. Half way through, Rachel wondered down into the living room where everyone was playing and joined in.

When the game had finished, Rachel asked if she could borrow Mitchie while everyone was setting up for Scrabble.

Mitchie followed Rachel out of the room.

"What's up Rachel?"

"You know how I mentioned collaborating with you on a song?"

"Yea."

"I really need another opinion on this song. Your mom and Brown both say you have amazing song writing skills. I thought you could help me out."

"Sure."

"Could we do it now?"

"I guess. It's probably the best time to do it."

The two headed up the stairs and into the music room. Rachel pulled out her bright green song book and showed Mitchie the song.

_This is wrong but I can't help but feel like  
There ain't nothing more out there  
Misty morning come again and I can't  
Help but wish I could see your face  
And I knew from the first time I paid  
I'd be breaking all my rules to see you  
You smile that beautiful smile and  
All the girls in the front row scream your name_

So dim that spotlight, tell me things like  
I can't take my eyes off of you  
I'm no one special, just another  
Wide eyed girl who's desperately in love with you  
Give me a photograph to hang on my wall, superstar

"Wow this is really good. Are you sure you need my help?"

"Yea, I don't know how to phrase what I want to say."

"Ok, so judging from this, it's about a famous guy right?"

"Yea, it's pretty much about the relationship I had with Shane, but I want to leave our relationship on a good note when I finally give up on him."

"Oh. Well, Rachel, I just want you to know that if you really wanted it to work you could still be friends with him. You know, after all of this blows over."

"I don't know if I really could though Mitchie. He has Tess right now and I'm really jealous. The harder part is that I knew him before we dated and I know that she's all wrong for him. When he said he had found some one, and then after I met you and talked to you and I found out that you and he were connected even a little, I hoped that you were this new girl in his life."

"Wow, I'm flattered, but right now would definitely not been the time for me to be in any type of relationship past what he and I have and with Tess in the middle of it. Don't you think he's moving into a relationship a little too fast after his break up?"

"It's typical pop star. He didn't want me but he wanted to be wanted so he went for her."

"I never thought about that. Any way about your song how about how you felt when he was out on tour."

"Like what?"

"Like um…Morning loneliness, comes around when I'm not/ Dreaming about you/ When my world wakes up today/ You'll be in another town/ And I knew when I saw your face, I'd be/ Counting down the ways to see you/ You smile that beautiful smile and/ All the girls in the front row scream your name

And then go back to the chorus."

Rachel wrote down Mitchie's lyrics and then the chorus again. Then she sang out the song as far as it had been written.

_This is wrong but I can't help but feel like  
There ain't nothing more out there  
Misty morning come again and I can't  
Help but wish I could see your face  
And I knew from the first time I paid  
I'd be breaking all my rules to see you  
You smile that beautiful smile and  
All the girls in the front row scream your name_

So dim that spotlight, tell me things like  
I can't take my eyes off of you  
I'm no one special, just another  
Wide eyed girl who's desperately in love with you  
Give me a photograph to hang on my wall, superstar

_Morning loneliness, comes around when I'm not_

_Dreaming about you_

_When my world wakes up today_

_You'll be in another town_

_And I knew when I saw your face, I'd be_

_Counting down the ways to see you_

_You smile that beautiful smile and_

_All the girls in the front row scream your name_

So dim that spotlight, tell me things like  
I can't take my eyes off of you  
I'm no one special, just another  
Wide eyed girl who's desperately in love with you  
Give me a photograph to hang on my wall, superstar

Rachel continued to sing as the words just came to her.

You played in bars, you play guitar  
I'm invisible and everyone knows who you are  
And you'll never see, you sing me to sleep  
Every night from the radio

So dim that spotlight, tell me things like  
I can't take my eyes off of you  
I'm no one special, just another  
Wide eyed girl who's desperately in love with you  
Give me a photograph to hang on my wall, superstar  
Sweet, sweet superstar, superstar

"Mitchie, grab my book and write that down as I sing it again. I don't think I'll remember it if it's not down in then next four seconds."

Mitchie snatched up the pen and book and wrote down the lyrics as Rachel sang them.

'_Everything is different, why do things change? I'm still standing here, but you've walked away. Everything is nothing now that I see, everything we are is everything we're gonna be.'_

Mitchie jumped hearing her phone ring.

"Do you mind if I take this?"

"No, go ahead. Oh, and don't mention this song to Shane. I'm not sure he would just think that I was an over obsessed ex-girlfriend."

"I'll be right back."

Mitchie left the room and answered the phone.

"Hey," Mitchie answered with a smile.

_Hey, listen I have something to ask you._

"What's up?"

_Well, we're filming our music video and it's almost done, but it needs something more than just me at a theme park._

"What did you have in mind?"

"Mitchie, Rachel. We need to go or Sierra will miss her train," Mr. Torres called from downstairs.

"Oh, I'm sorry Shane. Can I call you back? Sierra's leaving right now, but I'll be back at camp in a little over an hour."

_I have a show until twelve it's not that important. Oh, and check your e-mail._

"Ok. I'll talk to you later."

_Bye Mitchie._

"Talk to you later Shane."

Mitchie hung up as Rachel was headed out of the room.

_What did she hear? Well, there wasn't much to hear I guess. She said she would be ok with us dating too. Chill Mitchie, not everyone is against you._

"Was it Shane?" Rachel asked.

"Yea. Something about Tess helping Nate with Spanish and having private conversations that Shane still can't understand. He wanted translations so I gave him a few words and told him to work on the stuff that Nate did until he's in town for one on one help."

"He's coming here?"

"Not any time soon, but I still gave him homework of his own."

Rachel laughed and led the way to Mitchie's room to help Mitchie with Sierra's bags. The two lugged the bags down to the front door where they met the rest of the group. After everyone was loaded into the van they headed off to the train station.

Sierra's phone rang and she answered it.

"Hello? Oh hey Karina. Yea, I'm on my way home right now. I should be there in about two hours. You got us time there? That's awesome. Ok. I'll see you then."

Mitchie looked at Sierra with a confused face.

"She just called to tell me that she got us time in the gym with a personal trainer," Sierra explained

"And you're really gonna do this?"

"Mitchie, if it stops being fun I'll stop. Right now all I'm doing is eating better and exercising. You do that every day better than I do. I don't see what's so wrong with that."

Mitchie nodded. It made sense for Sierra to want to be in shape, it just was not the Sierra Mitchie was used to. The old Sierra would want to sit at home and eat a bag of chips while watching movies. This new Sierra seemed to be just as cool, but not the same as what Mitchie was expecting.

_How could some one change so much in a week? I figured she'd have made new friends but this fast?_

The van pulled up into a parking spot at the train station. Mitchie, Sierra, and Mrs. Torres got out of the van leaving Rachel in charge of the camp kids.

The three carried Sierra's luggage towards the platform. Mitchie hugged Sierra and said goodbye. Sierra said she'd call when she got home and that she couldn't wait until the Connect 3 concert to see Mitchie. Sierra said goodbye to Mrs. Torres and with a little help got onto the train with her luggage. Just like that she was gone.

Mitchie and her mom walked back to the car sadly. It was as if they had just said goodbye to the fourth member of their family again.

After getting back to camp, Mitchie and Rachel went to an empty rehearsal studio and finished writing the piano and guitar music for the song.

"Wow, that sounds really good," Caitlyn said, walking in with Alicia and Abigail.

"Aw, thanks Caitlyn," Rachel responded.

"Yea, definitely lighter than some of the other stuff you've been writing lately," Abigail commented.

"I don't know what to say to that Abby. Do I hug you or yell at you?"

"I'd prefer the hug," Abigail laughed.

"What are you going to call it?" Alicia asked.

"I don't know. Mitchie do you want to name it? It is your song too."

"Really? Oh, Rachel I don't know if I could."

"Come on Mitchie. I want you to," Rachel pushed.

"Um… Ok…How about…Superstar."

"Sounds great."

Mitchie's phone rang. She looked down.

_Mom_

"Caitlyn, mom wants us for dinner set up," Mitchie said anticipating what her mom was about to say, "Hello?"

_Honey, I know you and Rachel are working on a song but I could really use your help in the kitchen._

"Caitlyn and I'll be right there."

Mitchie hung up and said goodbye, leaving the cabin with Caitlyn right behind her.

"So, how was your weekend with Sierra?" Caitlyn asked as the two headed for the mess-hall.

"It was fun. We talked about boys, she told me about the fashion show she's doing with her boyfriend's sister and we took a walk to town. Yesterday my mom took us to the mall for a couple hours. Did Brown tell you he's going to have a competition to send a couple students to the music awards show this year?"

"No. Where did you here that?"

"My mom had me buy a dress just incase. She said it's always been in the plans."

"Well, we all know you'll get one of those seats. You have private lessons for crying out loud."

"What if he decides to pick out of a different category? He could be picking for instruments or some one who is amazing with a computer."

Caitlyn smiled at the thought that she could be picked to go to the music awards.

"That would be awesome. Hey did you ever call Shane?"

"Yea, we talked for like three hours. Everything is just fine and things with Tess are better."

The girls ran into the mess-hall and helped with dinner until the music played and the rest of camp came in to eat.

After dinner was over and the dishes were done, Mitchie and her cabin mates headed back to the cabin. Caitlyn pulled out her computer and started working on a few more beats. Alicia pulled out some sheet music and left for a practice cabin and Abigail grabbed her guitar and headed for the guitar.

'_Sometimes I have good days and it's good to be me, Sometimes I get the best of insecurity. And it's quite alright to be the one and only, but today I feel like the one and lonely'_

"Hey Sierra."

_Wow, you're good._

"It's called caller ID."

_Haha very funny. Anyways I just wanted to let you know that I got home and… the tickets have arrived for the show! I'm so excited Mitchie!_

Mitchie heard a ripping sound like an envelope being torn open.

_That's funny, these tickets look different than the ones that I have seen online for the same show._

"Maybe they switched the look or made more seating or something," Mitchie suggested, trying to keep her surprise a surprise.

_Maybe. Anyways I just thought I'd let you know they're here and tell Caitlyn that I still think that Jason is the cutest._

"Ok. I'll do that, but you're wrong. It's Shane."

_Somehow I knew you were gonna say that. Caitlyn said Nate, but I guess everyone has different things they are attracted to._

"What about John?"

_I can still have a celebrity crush when I have a boyfriend Mitchie._

"John is still who you are bringing to the concert right?"

_Yep. And mom said that you and Caitlyn can stay at my place if you don't have any plans elsewhere yet._

"I don't know if my mom made plans but I'll get back to you."

_Cool. Well I have to go, Karina is at the door for to head to the trainer. I'll talk to you later._

"Ok. Bye Sierra."

_Say hi to the guys for me._

"I will."

Mitchie hung up.

"Sierra says Jason is the cutest."

"No way," protested Caitlyn, "Nate for sure."

"Nah, Shane."

"Whatever."

'_Everything is different, why do things change? I'm still standing here, but you've walked away. Everything is nothing now that I see, everything we are is everything we're gonna be.'_

"Hello?"

_Hey._

"I thought you had a concert."

_We do. It's Nate's solo._

"So you called me for about two minutes."

_Yep. I wanted to ask you something._

"What?"

_Do you think you can get to Sierra's house for the concert in Hornsby? We are going to pull people from the audience for the music video and use them for a certain scene. If you come to the signing before hand I can get you back stage passes._

"Don't you think someone will be suspicious. AKA your band mates?"

"Hey, Mitchie. What do I tell Nate? He asked me if I could go to Hornsby with you even if I don't have tickets to the show," Caitlyn asked.

_I have a feeling you know the answer to that question if I overheard Caitlyn correctly._

"You did. Tell Nate yes, Caitlyn. We'll be there, Shane."

_Great. Any chance you could meet me at my hotel? I thought maybe we could do dinner or something._

"Like a date?"

_If you want it to be. I know you said you weren't ready for a relationship and I respect that, but dinner is dinner._

"I think I can do that."

_Great. I'll make an extra reservation at the hotel. I want you here, I don't want to have any problems getting you here._

"We'll take an early train and I'll get Sierra to pick us up. Don't worry I'll take care of the details. We could stay with her."

_No. I want to treat my friends. Let me pamper you and Caitlyn a little. I'll have a limo come for you. You don't need to take the train._

Mitchie sighed. She did not like that Shane could pamper her. She had tried so hard not to look like she was looking for something from Shane and he was making it really hard.

"Fine. You can pamper us to the point of the hotel room, but let me get my own tickets and let us take the train. Please. I've never taken the train anywhere before and I want to see what it's like."

_Ok, but promise me you'll be there._

"I promise. Now go, Nate's solo must be almost over."

_You're right. I'll talk to you later. Check your e-mail._

"Oh right. Bye Shane."

_Bye Mitchie._

* * *

Shane was rudely shaken awake by George after only a couple hours of sleep.

"We're stopping for dinner. Get up."

Shane blinked several times and got out of his bunk.

"Where are we?"

"Frankfort, Kentucky. We'll have dinner and then head to the hotel for a couple hours. Then the venue. One concert here and off to Tennessee."

"That's here already? One of my campers was from Tennessee."

"Have you talked to them. Do they have tickets? It's good publicity if you are still in contact with your campers."

"Yea. They'll be there. We're filming there right?"

"Yes. Remember only six girls. Got it."

Shane nodded as he followed George out of the bus and into the Burger Queen.

* * *

The next few weeks passed quickly. Mitchie was busy with school work, Caitlyn was struggling to stay awake in classes, Abigail and Rachel were getting closer, Alicia had fallen for a guy she had met in town on a girl's laundry weekend, and Brown was hounding Mitchie to sing until her throat gave out.

Finally the week of the concert came. Caitlyn and Mitchie were more than distracted through their classes Friday afternoon. Time seemed to go half speed.

_Mitchie-_

_Can time go any slower._

_-Caitlyn_

_Caitlyn-_

_I know what you mean this is ridiculous. I should have just asked my mom to get us out of classes for the day._

_-Mitchie_

_Mitchie-_

_What time is our train? Is Sierra meeting us at the station or are we taking a taxi to the hotel?_

_-Caitlyn_

_Caitlyn-_

_How are you doing? Call me when you get in town. When is your train?_

_-Nate_

_Mitchie-_

_When does your train get in? I'm sending Tess to pick you up. Look for a red convertible. She wanted to drive so she rented one for this show._

_-Shane_

_Caitlyn-_

_Shane is sending Tess to pick us up. Don't be mean to her. We're all going to get along this weekend. The train leaves for Tennessee at one so make sure to get out of classes early if you can. Mom got us out of the afternoon classes because it's music related. She'll drive us as soon as lunch is ready._

_-Mitchie_

_Tess- _

_I'll text you as soon as we get to the stop before Hornsby._

_-Mitchie_

_Mitchie-_

_Sounds great. I can't wait to see you._

_-Tess_

_Shane-_

_Tess will take care of getting me so don't worry about Caitlyn and I getting there. When you go to rehearsal I'm gonna go claim my tickets. Don't worry they're bought just not on me._

_-Mitchie_

_Caitlyn-_

_What was the history homework?_

_-Peggy_

_Nate-_

_I'll be there when I get there. We're leaving at one from Camp Rock so we should be there around three at the earliest four at the latest._

_-Caitlyn_

_Peggy-_

_Chapter 10 is due Monday._

_-Caitlyn_

_Mitchie-_

_I want to give you something before you leave for the concert._

_-Rachel_

**SO? What did you think? Please leave a comment. Good, bad or ugly? Worth the wait?? Finally the concert is coming. I'm excited to write that part. ~Lacey~**

* * *


	31. Backstage Privlages

**Happy New Year! Yes, I know it's been awhile since I've updated. To be honest I was dying to write too. I've been sooo busy with school, but I hope this makes up for it. Jason's ringtone is new...it's by MC Hammer. Any questions or comments? Don't be afraid to ask.

* * *

**

LAST TIME

_Mitchie- Can time go any slower. -Caitlyn_

_Caitlyn- I know what you mean this is ridiculous. I should have just asked my mom to get us out of classes for the day. -Mitchie_

_Mitchie- What time is our train? Is Sierra meeting us at the station or are we taking a taxi to the hotel? -Caitlyn_

_Caitlyn- How are you doing? Call me when you get in town. When is your train? -Nate_

_Mitchie- When does your train get in? I'm sending Tess to pick you up. Look for a red convertible. She wanted to drive so she rented one for this show. -Shane_

_Caitlyn- Shane is sending Tess to pick us up. Don't be mean to her. We're all going to get along this weekend. The train leaves for Tennessee at one so make sure to get out of classes early if you can. Mom got us out of the afternoon classes because it's music related. She'll drive us as soon as lunch is ready. -Mitchie_

_Tess- I'll text you as soon as we get to the stop before Hornsby. -Mitchie_

_Mitchie- Sounds great. I can't wait to see you. -Tess_

_Shane- Tess will take care of getting me so don't worry about Caitlyn and I getting there. When you go to rehearsal I'm gonna go claim my tickets. Don't worry they're bought just not on me. -Mitchie_

_Caitlyn- What was the history homework?-Peggy_

_Nate- I'll be there when I get there. We're leaving at one from Camp Rock so we should be there around three at the earliest four at the latest. -Caitlyn_

_Peggy- Chapter 10 is due Monday. -Caitlyn_

_Mitchie- I want to give you something before you leave for the concert. -Rachel_

* * *

**NOW**

As the last bell before lunch rang, Mitchie ran out of her class without saying goodbye to Brown and headed toward the mess hall searching left and right for Caitlyn as she went.

"Mitchie!"

Mitchie twisted around to see Rachel headed straight for her. Mitchie waved and continued her speedy pace towards the mess hall.

"Mitchie, slow down you've got time to get to the train station. Did you get my text?"

"Sorry, Rachel, I'm just really excited to see Sierra. It's been almost a month and it's kinda exciting that I finally will be meeting her boyfriend today too. And yes I did get you're text. What did you want to give me?"

"Well, even if Shane is mad at me, Nate's birthday is next week," Rachel said, catching up with Mitchie's insanely quick pace.

"Really? Oh shoot, I knew being friends with pop stars would come with consequences I didn't even think about it. How much time do I have to find him a gift to send to his parent's house?"

"Relax, you have until December 2nd. He'll be turning 16. I got him something easy. He plays guitar so I got him a couple boxes of picks for his guitar. He gives them to fans all the time and as someone with experience I know you lose picks all the time."

Rachel handed Mitchie a small bag with a little card hanging off the string.

"Wow, that's smart. Any other ideas? I don't have any idea what to get him?"

Rachel thought for a little while.

"The last time I hung out with the band, Nate was complaining that his capo was getting old and the springs were getting loose on it. You could get him a new one."

"Thanks Rachel."

"No problem," Rachel said with a smile.

Mitchie entered the kitchen with a wave goodbye to Rachel. Her mom was sitting on a stool rolling meat balls when Mitchie walked in.

"Hey mom."

"Hey sweetie, are you ready to go?"

"Yea, I just need to grab my duffle bag from the cabin and find Caitlyn."

"Caitlyn just texted to say that she was running a little late because Mr. Polish made everyone in class perform solos and no one could leave until everyone performed."

Mitchie nodded. She pulled out her cell phone and saw that she had missed that text because of Brown's cell phone policy. She had to turn off her cell phone and hand it to her at the beginning of every lesson so that if it were to even ring, it would not disrupt recording.

Mitchie told her mom she was going to run to the cabin to grab her duffle and headed out of the kitchen.

_Mom's got everything under control. Now, to get Caitlyn out of class._

Mitchie looked at her cell phone.

_12:15. Come on Caitlyn; we have to go! The train leaves at one!_

Mitchie arrived at her cabin, grabbed her duffle and computer bag, and Caitlyn's duffle and computer bag and headed towards classroom 6. Caitlyn was sitting closest to the door and Mitchie could see her itching to move.

_I need a plan… let's see… Do I have paper in my bag?_

Mitchie looked through her bag for paper and a pencil.

_Ah ha._

She quickly scrawled a note to Mr. Polish and signed Dee's name.

_She won't mind._

Mitchie quickly put the bags to the side and went to the door. She knocked once and entered.

"Excuse me Mr. Polish," Mitchie said entering the room and handing him the piece of paper.

"Ah, yes. That's quite fine. Miss Gellar, Dee needs to see you. Take all your books with you and enjoy your weekend."

Caitlyn nodded; shocked that Mitchie had found a way to get her out of class. She picked up her book bag and followed Mitchie out. Mitchie motioned for Caitlyn to be quiet as she handed over the duffle and computer bag.

Once the duet was out of range of the class room, Caitlyn hugged Mitchie.

"Thank you sooo much I don't know what I would have done if we missed the train because of me."

"We're not out of the woods yet," Mitchie commented looking down at her cell phone.

_12:30._

"We need to be boarding the train in a half an hour."

The two picked up their pace headed strait for Connie's van.

"Come on girls, you don't want to miss your train," Connie urged as the two jumped into the back seat.

Connie started the car and took off out of camp.

Time continued to pass and soon the girls were waving goodbye to Connie and running through the train station.

Mitchie looked at her phone.

_12:56._

"What platform was it again?" Caitlyn asked, looking around.

"Platform 4."

"Ok I see it let's run."

Mitchie and Caitlyn fought their way through the crowd of travelers heading in the other direction. They finally reached the platform as the doors were closing.

"Wait!" Mitchie yelled at the man closing the door, but it was too late. The doors closed and the train began to move.

Mitchie was breathing hard. Caitlyn started to cry.

"I can't… believe… we missed… the train…" Mitchie said, still trying to catch her breath.

"We're so screwed," Caitlyn breathed out through her tears.

"I'll call my mom, maybe she has some idea of what we should do."

Caitlyn nodded as Mitchie dialed the number.

_Mitchie? Did you make it?_

"No…"

_Oh, honey, I'm sorry. Do you want me to come get you or are you gonna trade in your tickets and go later?_

"You can do that?"

_Yea. Just go to the ticket master and explain your situation. Oh, and sweetie, don't forget to call Tess so she won't be waiting at the station for you._

"Thanks mom."

_You're welcome. Have fun honey._

"Ok bye."

Mitchie grabbed Caitlyn's arm as the two maneuvered over to the ticket desk. The waited until they could speak to some one and asked to switch out their tickets.

"Yes you can switch your tickets, but I'm afraid that then next train to Graceland, Tennessee will not be here until three," the person behind the desk said.

"Well, what is the ETA for Graceland in that train?" Caitlyn asked a little panicked.

"According to the conductor you should be there by five thirty tonight."

Mitchie and Caitlyn switched the tickets and went to look around the station.

The station was rather large considering its location. It contained a bookstore, a bakery, a coffee shop and several other small stores. Caitlyn even pointed out a small music store. Mitchie was able to buy Nate's birthday present there and Caitlyn also found something she thought Nate would like.

Time passed quickly and before they knew it the two were sitting on the train waiting for their arrival in Graceland.

* * *

"So she's not there?"

_Shane, I looked everywhere. There is no sign of Mitchie anywhere._

"Did you try calling her?"

_Yea, no answer. Listen, I'll stay here and wait for her to show up, but you and Nate should head over to the rehearsal. I'll call you as soon as I spot her._

"Ok. And I'll call her again."

_Don't worry Shane, she probably missed her train and forgot to call. It's no big deal. I talked to the people at the desk and they said that the next train from Arkansas comes in at five thirty. It's only three. You'll see. Everything will work out just fine._

"Thanks Tess."

_What are friends for._

"I guess you're right. I'm gonna call her and see what's up."

_Sounds good. I'll talk to you later._

"Bye."

Shane hung up the phone and continued to pace in the entrance hall of the hotel. He quickly dialed Mitchie's number.

_Hello?_

"Hey Mitchie, It's Shane."

_Hey Shane._

Shane sensed the sadness in her voice.

"What's wrong?"

_Caitlyn and I missed the train._

"Oh…"

_I'm so sorry Shane. You have no idea how much I wanted to be there. I can't believe I missed it._

Shane sighed.

"I understand. So are you coming at all. I guess dinner is kinda out of the question at this point."

_Caitlyn and I are trying to get the next train but it doesn't leave until five thirty so it's pushing it to get there._

"Oh, Mitchie."

Shane started to feel very emotional. It was not something he was used to. He never cried over anything. Not a bad break up, not a skinned knee, not a bully when he was called Shane Gay in elementary school, nothing seemed to bother him. Amazingly, he felt horribly broken up about the news that Mitchie might not make it to the concert.

_Shane, it's all gonna work out. I'm gonna get there. If I'm late to the concert Caitlyn and I will head straight to your hotel. We'll see each other tonight no matter what._

"Ok."

_Listen Shane, I gotta call Tess and tell her we missed the train. I don't know how I forgot to do that before, but I promise you'll see my smiling face tonight._

"Ok. Call me when you get to Tennessee even if you think I'll be on stage."

_I'll do that. Bye Shane._

"Bye Mitch."

Shane hung up his phone and walked back up the stairs to his room. Nate would want to know that Caitlyn was not going to be at the concert. Jason would want to know that there would be no reason to take Tess out to dinner. Shane could not understand why he was so effect by Mitchie.

_She's just another girl. I've dated tons of girls before, why does Mitchie seem so much more important than any of them._

_It's because she's not just another girl…She's Mitchie, the girl who stole your whole heart. No girl has ever taken your breath away the way she has. No girl has ever been strong enough to change you in anyway and now everyone says she's changed you._ His mind battled back.

Shane reached his room and opened the door to see Nate and Jason napping on his bed.

"Really, guys. On my bed?" Shane said in a loud voice.

The boys were startled awake. They immediately picked up a bad vibe from his tone of voice.

"What's up?" Jason asked.

"Mitchie's not gonna make it."

"What!" Nate exclaimed.

"Mitchie and Caitlyn missed their train. They're still coming to visit, but they might not make it for the concert."

"I sense the need for a group hung," Jason said getting up and pulling his band mates towards himself.

Shane turned out of the hug.

"No, Jason. I need some space."

Nate sensed Shane's annoyance and pulled Jason out of the room with him.

* * *

_Mitchie?_

"Hey Tess. Sorry for leaving you hanging. We missed our train and we're on our way now," Mitchie said into the phone.

_That's what I figured. You know, Shane could have sent a limo in the first place and you wouldn't be in this mess._

"I know, but I didn't want star treatment and I have to go to Sierra's before the concert anyway because the tickets are under her name."

_I see. So what time does your train get in?_

"Five thirty, but I told Shane that I wasn't gonna make it to the concert."

_Why did you say that? Shane's mood has got to be really bad right now because you said that._

"I didn't mean to upset him, but he'll be all the more happy when he sees me then."

_Oh, Mitchie. Why are you always making things so much more complex than they have to be?_

"I guess that's just my way. Caitlyn did call Nate and he's on board with what's going on. He knows that we'll be in at 5:30 and that Shane is not expecting that."

_So it's a surprise. Interesting._

"Sierra doesn't know she gets to meet him either. Nate was the one who upgraded the tickets. Shane thought that we were going to meet up at the signing after the concert anyway. Sierra is picking up the tickets at the door on the way in. It just works to surprise both of them."

_So. We're not going back to the hotel when I pick you up?_

"Nope. You'll take me to Sierra's with Caitlyn."

_Do I at least get to meet Sierra?_

"You will… at the concert."

_Mitchie… you and your complexity of everything!_

"Whatever. I'll see you in about an hour."

_Bye Mitchie._

"Talk to you later Tess."

Mitchie hung up the phone feeling slightly guilty.

Caitlyn was talking to Nate about the plan and looking out the window as they traveled through cities. Mitchie, feeling slightly alone, pulled out her MP3 player and scrolled to her Connect 3 playlist and closed her eyes.

The next thing Mitchie knew, she was being shaken awake by Caitlyn.

"Mitchie, we're here. Time to get up and go see Shane."

Mitchie's eyes popped open and she jumped to her feet. Through the window of the train she saw a skinny blonde in a red jacket. Mitchie raced for the door and was off the train first.

"Tess!" Mitchie called, grabbing the blonde's attention.

"Mitchie, Caitlyn!" Tess yelled, waving.

Mitchie and Caitlyn ran over and gave Tess a quick hug before the trio left the station for the bright red convertible waiting in the parking lot.

"Uh-oh," Tess said slowing to a stop right inside the station.

"What's up Tess?" Mitchie asked passing her up.

"Ok. Caitlyn, I need you to go with Mitchie to get the car."

"Why do we need to get the car?" Caitlyn inquired.

"I think I've been found."

"Huh?" Mitchie questioned.

"Paparazzi."

Caitlyn groaned.

"Well, they'll know our names sooner or later," Mitchie said, trying to keep a positive attitude. She grabbed Caitlyn's hand and the keys to the car before heading out to the cameras.

"_Who are you?"_

"_How do you know Tess Tyler?"_

"_Do you plan on going to the Connect 3 concert in town tonight?"_

"_What is your connection to Tess Tyler?"_

"_Do you have a connection to Connect 3 or TJ Tyler?"_

The questions buzzed by as Mitchie and Caitlyn broke into a run. They reached the car out running the paparazzi. Mitchie plugged the key into the ignition and soon the car was charging towards the front door. Tess ran out and soon the trio was headed towards the highway.

"Mitchie, do you know where you're going?" Tess asked.

"Yea, I've got it completely under control."

"Caitlyn have you talked to Nate since you got into town?"

"I was just about to text him," Caitlyn answered to Tess.

* * *

Nate, Shane, and Jason fought their way though the paparazzi towards the car headed for rehearsal. Nate felt his side vibrate. Once he was safe inside the car he pulled it out and read the new text message that was waiting for him.

_Nate-_

_We're with Tess._

_-Caitlyn_

Caitlyn waited patiently for a reply from Nate while listening to Mitchie explain what they passed. She vaguely heard Mitchie point out "Barney's Burgers," a place where Mitchie had worked during the last school year.

_Caitlyn-_

_Shane will be happy to hear that. Thanks for the update. We're headed to rehearsal. See you in a couple hours. =)_

_-Nate_

* * *

Around six, Mitchie pulled into Sierra's driveway. Tess got back into the driver's seat and Mitchie and Caitlyn said goodbye before heading for the door. Mitchie reached it first and rang the doorbell.

"Mitchie!" an older woman yelled, as she answered the door.

"Hi Kayla. How are you?" Mitchie asked, giving her second motherly figure a big hug.

"I'm terrific! It's so great to see you. So who's your friend?"

"Kayla, this is Caitlyn, my roommate. Caitlyn, this is Kayla, Sierra's mom."

"Nice to meet you," Caitlyn said, putting out her hand to shake, but Kayla leaned in and gave her a hug.

"Sierra," Kayla called into the house.

"Yea, mom? Who was at the door?" Sierra said, popping her head out from over the top of the stairs.

"Come and see."

Sierra ran down the stairs, stumbling a little as her usual clumsy self. As soon as she saw Mitchie, she started screaming. Mitchie screamed back and they gave each other a big hug. Then Sierra went over to Caitlyn and gave her a hug too.

"Welcome home. Ok let's get you guises stuff upstairs and then we'll have dinner and head out," Sierra said, leading the way up the stairs to her room.

_Wow Sierra actually cleaned her room. I can actually see the color of the carpeting. This is going to be a good weekend._

Mitchie and Caitlyn dumped their stuff and the girls headed down to the kitchen. Mitchie looked around. She felt so at home here. Sierra's house was her second home growing up. She knew every nook and cranny in the little house. The kitchen was rather expansive. There were cabinets on all the walls including above the refrigerator. On the other side of the kitchen was the dinning room with a big wooden table already laden with what smelled like a delicious meal.

"Thanks for having us Kayla," Mitchie said, heading to the table.

"Yea, thanks for taking in a stranger," Caitlyn continued.

"Oh, it's my pleasure girls. Anything for Sierra's friends."

"And she means it," Sierra commented.

"Hey, where's John?" Mitchie noticed.

"Oh, he thought it would be better if he didn't come, but Lilac is coming instead."

"Man, I was looking forward to meeting him," Mitchie commented, feeling internally a little more relaxed.

"You'll meet him tomorrow."

"Good point, so where is Lilac then?"

"She called right before you got here, she's on her way, but she had cheerleading practice then Karina's dropping her here."

"Wait, I'm confused. Mitchie said that she only had you when she lived here. Who are all these people you're talking about?" Caitlyn asked trying to catch up in the conversation.

"John is my boyfriend, he's my age, Lilac is his sister, she's a year younger than us, and Karina is a friend of Lilac's and not someone Mitchie likes very much."

"Ah. What's wrong with Karina Mitchie?"

"Karina is the reason Sierra is my only friend in this town."

"I see. You obviously don't want to talk about it so I'll drop it. What's for dinner?"

Just as she asked Kayla brought in a fresh batch of egg rolls and a big bowl of fried rice. The door bell rang at the same time and Sierra went to go get it.

"Sierra's family is big on Chinese take out," Mitchie explained the choice of cuisine.

Sierra returned with a skinny brunette girl much taller than herself.

"Mitchie, Caitlyn this is Lilac. Lilac, the girl to the right is Mitchie and next to her is her roommate Caitlyn."

"Nice to meet you," Lilac said extending a hand to each of them.

After the introductions were finished, the girls took a seat, prayed for the food, and dug in. About five minutes into the meal Caitlyn whispered to Mitchie, "Call Shane. Let him know you made the train."

Mitchie excused herself from the table and called Shane.

_Hey I'm about to go into lock down, what's up?_

"I made the train. Let Tess know I'll be there soon."

_I'm so glad to hear that. Do you think you'll make it to the concert?_

"We'll have to wait and see, but I hope so."

_Ok. Great. I have to go, but I'll see you later. Love you, bye._

"B-bye," Mitchie stuttered.

_Did Shane just say what I thought he said???? I think he did. Oh my goodness. What do I do? What do I do? What do I do? Relax Mitchie. Maybe he didn't mean it that way._

* * *

Shane stood there in horror of what he had just said.

_Did I really just tell Mitchie I love her? No, no, no. I'm half asleep that's all I just said goodbye. No big deal. Nice try Shane you know you said, "I love you." Oh crap…_

Nate nudged Shane and the trio headed into lock down mode. He concentrated on what he was doing and what he would be singing that night. He also focused on what he was there to do. Now was not the time to think about Mitchie.

_But why is it so hard?_

* * *

The girls piled into the car. Mitchie and Sierra in the front, Caitlyn and Lilac in the back. They talked and laughed all the way to the stadium. Sierra parked the car and all the girls headed for the ticket master.

"Hi. Sierra Zoe is the name the tickets are under."

The ticket master hand over the tickets and backstage passes.

"Excuse me, I think you have the wrong tickets. I didn't pay for these backstage passes."

"I know," the ticket master replied, "the band occasionally has a free give away to special fans."

"Oh."

Sierra took the tickets and passes in a stage of shock. She handed the tickets out to her companions and a security guard lead them away from the crowd.

"So have any of you ever been backstage at a concert?" the security guard asked.

Everyone, Sierra and Lilac still in shock, shook their heads.

"The boys are going to sign autographs take pictures with you and then I will take you to your seats. After the performance, stay in your seats and you will be brought back stage by me or another security guard for a little more one on one time with the boys."

The girls nodded as they were lead within the bowels of the stadium. They reached a door that final was labeled. It said, "Dressing rooms and warm ups." All four girls squealed and the security guard opened the door and let them in.

"Welcome to back stage," a girl's voice greeted as the four entered secret territory, "I'm Tess Tyler."

Mitchie watched as her best friend almost fainted. This was a lot for Sierra to deal with. Mitchie smiled knowing what she did was really the best experience Sierra would ever get with her favorite band and older singer.

"Sorry, but do you think we could get a picture with you?" Lilac asked pulling out her camera.

"No, I don't mind at all. And then you can meet my mom and the boys."

Sierra nodded taking out her camera too. After Lilac and Sierra had handed their cameras off the security guard, the girls posed and took the picture.

"Alright, moving on," Tess said as if she was giving a tour, "Who wants to see TJ Tyler's dressing room?"

Tess lead the way with the four girls still in awe behind her. Mitchie and Caitlyn were in awe at what a real backstage looked like, while Sierra and Lilac could not even fathom who was giving the their tour.

They reached TJ's dressing room and Tess knocked.

"Who is it?" a voice called from inside.

"It's me, mom. I have the backstage group. They want to meet you."

"Come in, come in."

Tess opened the door and let the girls in.

"Mom, this is…oh I'm sorry I forgot to get your names."

"I'm Mitchie, this is Caitlyn, that's Sierra, and the one behind Sierra over there is Lilac," Mitchie volunteered, realizing that Tess was trying to keep the allusion that none of these girls knew here.

"Nice to meet you all. Would you like a picture or an autograph? I'm sorry to rush you but I have to be ready in about ten minutes."

Tess took the cameras from Sierra and Lilac again and also from Mitchie and Caitlyn.

"Say cheese," Tess said, once everyone was in position.

Tess then lead the girls out of TJ's dressing room and down the hall to a door marked "Shane." She knocked as she had on the last door. There was no answer.

"He must be visiting his band mates. Let's go down to Nate's dressing room and see if Nate's in there."

Tess continued down the hall to the door marked "Nate" and knocked.

"Yea?" a voice called from inside.

Tess poked her head in and said something before pulling the door open and letting in Sierra and Lilac first.

Nate was sitting on a couch with a guitar in had.

_Typical Nate._

"Nate, I would like you to meet Sierra, Lilac, Mitchie, and Ca-"

"Caitlyn!" Nate practically shouted, jumping up from the couch and putting his guitar down before giving the curly brunette a hug.

"Nate, I know you're happy to see her, but you do need to meet your fans…"

"Sorry," Nate said, "Caitlyn and I used to go to the same camp."

Nate smiled and talked with the girls for a little while joking that Mitchie looked familiar too. Everyone knew he knew her except Lilac and somehow she didn't pick up the connection either. The girls each took a picture with Nate and then posed for a group picture. Nate pulled out pictures of himself and signed them too. He joked with Mitchie and Caitlyn saying that they could get the signature any time so this was a waste of a perfectly good picture. They had a good laugh and then headed back out of the dressing room towards Jason's dressing room.

Tess was about to knock when the door opened. Jason was standing there. He was a little surprised by the crowd of gawking girls right outside of his door, but then he saw Mitchie and everything became clear.

"Hey girls come on in. I just need to send a text and I'll be right with you."

Jason pulled out his phone and about ten seconds later… _'You can't touch this… You can't touch this… You can't touch this… You can't touch this… You can't touch this…'_

_**New Text Message**_

_**Jason**_

_Mitchie-_

_Shane just headed back to his dressing room. I'll do pictures first then you can head over there before Tess heads in that direction._

_-Jason_

"Sorry," Mitchie said, turning red and nodding to Jason.

Jason took pictures just like Nate had and handed out signed pictures to all the girls with their names on them and a special note to each, handing Caitlyn two because Mitchie had pulled a perfect disappearing act.

* * *

There was a knock at the door.

_The backstage passes…_

"Come on in."

"Hey, pop star."

All of a sudden everything went black. Some one had covered Shane's eyes. Shane grabbed the hands trying to figure out whose they were.

_That voice. It sounded like Mitchie, but it couldn't have been…Could it?_

"Guess who," the voice said, closer now than it had been.

"Um… well, it's not Nate because he would never do this to me, and it's not Jason because his hands are rough from guitar. Tess is giving a tour to a bunch of fans including the fabulous girl who has some how managed to ditch her and now has her beautifully soft hands over my eyes so it's not Tess. You got me, the only guess I have is Mitchie Torres."

"Tada," Mitchie said, pulling her hands off Shane's eyes and smiling.

"Mitchie! I'm so glad you made it! I have a surprise for you."

"Oh, come on, Shane. I hate surprises."

"No you don't. You're just saying that so I'll tell you."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

A sound was heard coming from down the hall.

"The tour group…you need to make it look like you came in with them."

"How?"

"Get behind the door."

"Ok."

There was a knock at the door and Tess's face appeared around it.

"Hey Shane, backstage passes…Can they come in now?"

"Yea sure."

Tess opened the door and allowed the girls inside.

"Hi. I'm Shane Gray," Shane said in greeting, giving each of the girls a hug.

Mitchie was last in line and Shane lazily left his arm hanging on her shoulder.

"So who wants autographs?"

All four girls raised their hands. Shane laughed when he saw Mitchie's hand go up with the other girls. He pulled out four pictures asked for names and signed each according to what he knew about them. For Lilac he wrote, "Keep Rockin'-Shane Gray" For Caitlyn, "Hey dancin' machine! Be nice to Nate-Shane Gray." For Sierra, "Thanks for being such a good friend to Mitchie. You deserve this backstage pass just for that- Shane Gray p.s. I told you I was legit." And last but not least Mitchie's message was more personal and written smaller so that it didn't cover Shane's pretty face: "Mitchie, what can I say? I've found my missing piece in you. You are an awesome girl and I don't deserve you at all. Can't wait until Thanksgiving-Shane Gray"

After the pictures were taken. The security guard showed up again and the girls sadly left Shane's dressing room and headed to their seats.

TJ got up on the stage and sang several of her hit and then surprised everyone by bringing Tess out on stage and letting her sing her song from Final Jam.

_Wake up! When will things be good enough for you to see, all that we can be? I'm sick of, playing games and acting like we never care, like we're never there._

We pay attention, for only seconds.

Look at you, look at me. There's never any us. Can't you see all we can become? We can shine like the sun, if we believe that two stars are brighter than one. Come on, come on, come on, look at you. Come on, come on, come on, look at me.

Listen, the way we feel is not just about you and me, it's a harmony. Just give in, cause together we'll be brighter than just any star, a work of art.

We'll make the sky bright, uniting you and I.

Look at you, look at me. There's never any us. Can't you see all we can become? We can shine like the sun, if we believe that two stars are brighter than one. Come on, come on, come on, look at you. Come on, come on, come on.

Is it too much to ask, that you put us first? Oh. I feel like we're last in our universe, and it's not where we ought to be!

Look at you, look at me. There's never any us. Can't you see all we can become? We can shine like the sun, if we believe that two stars are brighter than one.

Look at you, look at me. There's never any us. Can't you see all we can become? We can shine like the sun, if we believe that two stars are brighter than one. Come on, come on, come on, look at you. Come on, come on, come on, look at me.

_Come on, come on, come on, look at you. Come on, come on, come on, look at me.  
_

The crowd cheered as Tess introduced Connect 3 and left the stage.

Jason, Shane, and Nate came out onto the stage waving and smiling.

"How is everybody tonight?" Jason asked into a microphone.

The crowd screamed.

"That's great," Shane said, "Well how about we give these fans something to scream about?"

Nate grabbed his guitar and started the first few chords of play my music. Mitchie laughed and smiled.

_It's sooooo cool seeing Shane up there doing something he really loves to do.__ I love his passion for music. Oh and his smile…_

Mitchie continued to day dream through out the set. She only stopped day dreaming when a stage hand brought out a stool for Shane. He grabbed a microphone stand and walked out to the edge of the stage.

"I want to sing you all a little song that's near and dear to my heart. I wrote it over the summer with a special girl in mind. That girl happens to be here tonight so I thought I would sing this in her general direction."

Mitchie laughed. Shane was trying really hard not to say her name or have her up on the stage, she could tell by his body language.

Shane began Gotta Find You. He stared into Mitchie's eyes the best he could.

Mitchie stood staring back breathing in the lyrics. Everything seemed to slip away. The crowd of screaming girls was gone, Caitlyn, Sierra, and Lilac were gone, the stress of the day melted away and Shane and Mitchie seemed to be the only two people in the room.

This fantasy was cut short, however, when the song came to an end and the crowd cheered behind Mitchie. Mitchie joined in, never looking away from Shane.

Nate and Jason rejoined him on the stage and finished with two new songs. They thanked the audience and left the stage.

The security guard from earlier arrived at Mitchie's side.

"Are you girls ready to go back stage?"

Lilac and Sierra nodded eagerly and followed the security guard in front, while Mitchie and Caitlyn followed.

"That was amazing," Mitchie commented.

"Yea, and did you hear what Nate said? He said that that song was about someone he had been worried about all afternoon."

"And you assume it's you?" Mitchie asked jokingly.

Caitlyn gave her a fake appalled look as the security guard held the door to backstage open for them. The girls were greeted by all three members of Connect 3 each holding an almost empty water bottle.

"Hi guys," Jason said, going in for a group hug with the four girls.

"Hey, Jason," Mitchie said, with a smile.

"So, we have a surprise for you lucky girls of Tennessee," Nate said.

"What?" Mitchie urged, looking to Shane for a hint.

"We want fans to star in our music video and, well you're the lucky fans that have been chosen."

"No," Sierra said with a shock.

"Yes," Jason responded.

"We can't use Tess for everything," Nate commented, earning a laugh from Tess who was walking up with George.

"George these are the girls that have been selected for the video," Tess said.

"Nice to meet you girls," George said with a smile, "All right, I know exactly how we are going to do this.

"You, with the dark brown hair, I want you to play the 'girl with the voice.' You two with the curly brown hair, what would you say to being classmates trying to play for Shane's attention?"

Sierra squealed and Caitlyn nodded. It was not exactly what Caitlyn wanted but she could live with it.

"Oh, and you, you're going to play our "girl with the voice's best friend," George said, gesturing to Lilac.

George set to work figuring out when the scenes could be shot and how to film them. The next thing anyone knew, Shane was helping Mitchie into a car with Nate and Caitlyn while Jason, Sierra, and Lilac entered another car with Tess.

The cars pulled up to Rowling High School.

_What are we doing here? This is my old high school. Oh my gosh, are we going to actually film here?_

The door was pulled open and everyone piled out of the car. Mitchie and Shane reached the door of the school first.

"Did you know this used to be my school?" Mitchie asked Shane.

"That's cool. You should show George where all the best hiding places are for angles and stuff."

Mitchie nodded.

The rest of the group caught up to the couple and entered the building.

"Ok. Mitchie, right?" George checked receiving a nod from Shane, "I want you to go with the camera crew to the theater of this building. The custodian should have already set up a piano on the stage."

Mitchie followed the cameras headed towards the stage.

"What is the plan?" She asked, trying to get rid of the awkwardness of being in her old school in the middle of the night to film a music video.

"You are going to be sitting at the piano playing a song, and then we are going to flash to Shane walking through the hall and hearing someone in the theater. Then he will walk in, but you'll be gone.

"We plan to edit it to look like your shadow is walking out just as he is coming in."

Mitchie nodded to who she figured was the music video director.

She arrived in the theater and took a seat at the piano bench like she had been asked.

The crew went to the theater seats to get different angles and then the director called for all the lighting and technical work.

Mitchie quietly sat lonely on the stage. She decided to take the advantage of the piano and pulled her song book out of her purse and began to play around with some chords. She had started to write down some lyrics when she felt her side vibrate.

_**New Text Message**_

_**Shane**_

_Mitchie-_

_So much for hanging out tonight. I'm sorry this isn't working out how I thought it would._

_-Shane_

Mitchie smiled at Shane's concern.

_Shane-_

_Don't worry. This is a really cool experience and you don't leave town until Sunday so we can still spend time together tomorrow._

_-Mitchie_

Shane was right; the two had been jipped out of spending time together. The experience was worth the time apart, but experiencing anything alone is not as fun as experiencing it with someone.

The night passed quickly once the lights were up in the theater and all the scenes elsewhere were set up.

Mitchie had a scene at her old locker with Lilac talking while Nate and Jason would walk by and knock the books out of Lilac's hands. She also had a scene in the lunchroom with Shane sitting with Nate and Jason talking and Sierra and Caitlyn going up to flirt with Shane.

Altogether, the music video looked like it would be very successful. Then the scene came for Shane to find "the voice."

Mitchie was placed with the other girls in the choir room and dressed in sparkly blue dresses and heals. Shane was supposed to come in and hear a solo done by Mitchie.

The director had planned for Shane to run up to her, pick her up, spin around, and kiss her. Shane would do well until it came to the kiss and then he would freeze up. It was strange because he really liked Mitchie.

_So he can kiss Tess, but he can't kiss me. Wow. I can't believe he can kiss Tess but not me…Mitchie! Stop! You know Tess kissed him so don't even fight with that. Everything is going to be ok. Wait! That's it! I have to kiss Shane. If I make the first move, it'll happen!_

Shane ran through the scene again, but this time when they neared the kiss, Mitchie leaned in and kissed Shane's cheek. Shane was shocked but continued to finish singing the song with Mitchie by his side.

"That's a wrap," the director called.

Everyone headed back to the car. The sun was coming up.

_It must be near five in the morning. Wow long night._

Mitchie and Shane walked back the car in silence.

"So," Mitchie said, breaking the silence, "I have to ask…did you really mean what you said on the phone earlier?"

Shane began to squirm.

* * *

Shane stood in the middle of a high school parking lot with the girl of his dreams. He had slipped up and told her he loved her and now she was asking if he meant it.

_Of course I meant it, but she didn't want us to take the next step in our relationship. I over stepped the boundaries. What do I say?_

"Well, you don't have to say it back if you don't feel that way, but…yea I guess I meant it. I just thought that you would be upset about me saying it when we weren't even in a committed relationship."

"Shane, friendship is a committed relationship if you are willing to work at it. But back to the other subject, I know how I feel, but I don't know how to put it into words. So, right now I think it's better if I don't say how I feel."

Shane nodded.

_That can't be a bad thing… right? Oh, she's so beautiful on lack of sleep. We should probably get her back to the arena. I don't want her to go…_

Everyone piled in the cars and headed back towards Sierra's car.

When they reached the car, everyone said goodbye to each other and the girls got back into Sierra's car and headed back to her house.

Mitchie looked at her cell phone as they pulled into Sierra's driveway.

_7:00 AM. Wow. That was a long night. Time to sleep, but not too long. I need to make yesterday up to Shane._

The girls went in and strait to Sierra's room where they all fell on the bed and fell asleep before another word was said.

'_Everything is different, why do things change? I'm still standing here, but you've walked away. Everything is nothing now that I see, everything we are is everything we're gonna be.'_

Mitchie slowly gained consciousness.

"Hello," she answered groggily.

_Hey Mitchie. Sorry, did I wake you? I'm used to lack of sleep I wasn't thinking. I'll call you back later._

"No, Shane it's fine. I'm awake now."

_So. Did you have plans for tonight, because I was thinking you still owe me __dinner?_

"Let me check."

Mitchie threw her pillow at Sierra who woke suddenly.

"What Mitchie?"

"Do you mind if I go out to dinner with Shane?"

Sierra shook her head and fell back to sleep.

"Shane? You still there?"

_Yea._

"Dinner sounds great."

_Great. It's about four now. How about I pick up at five thirty?_

"Ok. Do you need the address?"

_Nah. Nate followed you guys home in one of the cars to make sure you got home ok on little sleep._

"Aw, Nate."

_He also plans to ask Caitlyn out ton-OW._

"What happened?"

_Nate just threw a pillow at me. Apparently he's nervous about asking Caitlyn out so he didn't want me to say anything._

"Don't worry I won't tell her. However, does he want me to wake her? If he wants to take her to dinner, it's gotta be tonight."

_You should wake her, but don't tell her why._

"Sounds good. I gotta go get ready then."

_Ok. Bye Mitchie._

"Bye Shane."

* * *

**So? Good, Bad, Amazing, or Horrible? Please let me know what you think! What do you think will happen next? I want your opinion.**

**~Lacey York~**


	32. WHAT!

**YAY! Guess who finally got a chance to update! I'm so happy I finally have finished this chapter! Enjoy!  
****

* * *

LAST TIME**

"Don't worry I won't tell her. However, does he want me to wake her? If he wants to take her to dinner, it's gotta be tonight."

_You should wake her, but don't tell her why._

"Sounds good. I gotta go get ready then."

_Ok. Bye Mitchie._

"Bye Shane."

* * *

**NOW**

Half an hour later a disgruntled Caitlyn and an excited Mitchie sat in the kitchen with Kayla. Sierra had explained Mitchie and Caitlyn's connection with Connect 3. Kayla consented to allow the girls to go to dinner with them and was now discussing curfew.

Caitlyn still did not know why she had gotten up. She did not have a date and as far as she knew she could still be upstairs asleep with Sierra and Lilac.

Mitchie had convinced her that she needed help getting ready for her non-date with Shane. Caitlyn had not been very happy about it, but decided to wake up when Mitchie pushed her off Sierra's bed.

"So, Mitchie. How long have you known these boys?"

"About two and a half months, but Caitlyn has known them longer," she added, hoping to gain some more trust from Kayla.

Kayla had been Mitchie's second mom. She had always been there for her and had worked side by side with Connie until Connie had become an entrepreneur. That had been part of the reason Mitchie got so close with Sierra. Sierra and Mitchie used to hang around at the bakery while their mothers worked. Whenever Connie and Kayla's schedules did not match up, Sierra or Mitchie would spend the day together with whoever's mom was off.

"How long have you known the boys then Caitlyn," Kayla enquired.

"About five years, but we just became close with them. They are all decent guys. I promise."

"Ok. I'll let you stay out until eleven, but if you're not back by then I'll send out a search party."

"Thank you Kayla," Mitchie said, giving her a hug.

Just then the doorbell rang and Mitchie ran to answer it.

There stood Shane and Nate. Both were dressed casually, but holding something behind themselves.

"Caitlyn, there's someone here to see you," Mitchie called back into the house.

Caitlyn walked to the door with a confused expression on her face.

"Mitchie, what are you talking about? Shane's here to see you."

"H-hi Caitlyn," Nate said, coming up to the door.

"Nate? What are you doing here?"

"I was wondering, if you're not busy, I mean you probably already have plans but I thought I'd ask anyway…"

"He's trying to ask you to dinner," Shane said.

Nate let out a breath and nodded.

"Sure, let me just get a pair of shoes," Caitlyn said, walking back into the depths of the house.

Shane hit Nate upside the head.

"Ow. Was that really necessary?"

"Yes," Mitchie and Shane answered together.

Caitlyn returned with a zip up sweatshirt.

"Where are we going?" Mitchie asked Shane.

"Well, if you don't mind a double date, I thought we could go bowling."

"That sounds terrific."

Shane finally pulled his other hand out from behind his back to reveal a bouquet of lilacs.

"Oh, Shane. You shouldn't have."

"I wanted to."

Mitchie smiled.

"Oh wow," Caitlyn said, as the group walked towards the black jeep waiting in the driveway.

Nate had surprised her with a dozen yellow roses. Caitlyn had never received such an amazing gift from anyone before, let alone a guy she liked.

Shane opened the door for Mitchie and helped her in before entering the car himself. He would be driving solo this trip.

Nate helped Caitlyn into the backseat before sitting next to her.

"Mitchie, where's the closest bowling alley?" Shane asked.

"Um… It's actually about three miles north of the high school on the same road."

"Ok. I know where I'm going then."

The talk in the car turned to small talk about the different places they past which included Barnie's Burgers, Horowitz Elementary School, and Rodgers Middle School. Mitchie explained different memories of each of the places. Her memories reminded the boys of memories from their childhood. Caitlyn talked about her memories at her various boarding schools as well.

Soon, the group arrived at the bowling alley.

Shane and Nate were quite gentlemen and helped Mitchie and Caitlyn out of the car.

_Wow, for one lesson the boys really picked up the "be nice to __girls" concept._

Shane took Mitchie's hand as they headed for the door.

"So Mr. Gray, how did you get away from the paparazzi?"

"We left as a band and dropped off the driver, Tess and Jason at a diner on the way here."

"Tricky," Mitchie commented as Shane held the door open for her, Caitlyn and Nate.

Nate and Shane put on sunglasses and baseball caps before going up to the desk to get a lane. Mitchie and Caitlyn waited behind them.

"So are you surprised?" Mitchie asked.

"Yes," Caitlyn responded, "I would have picked some nicer clothes if I had known that Nate was taking me out."

"Relax. He likes you, you like him and he took you out to go bowling even if you are wearing a pair of sweat pants."

Caitlyn smiled.

"I guess you're right."

The boys returned with bowling shoes for each of them and the four headed towards a lane.

Mitchie felt really bad after the first game ended. Sierra had forced her to join the bowling team freshman year and sophomore year and Mitchie ended up being really good.

Mitchie's score was about one hundred points above Nate's and Shane and Caitlyn got scores lower than one hundred.

"I let you win," Shane said, trying to keep up his mo-jo.

"Right," Mitchie playfully said back.

They continued to play after a brief break filled with pizza and soda.

It turned out that Shane was not shy of telling the truth to Mitchie. He had not tried the first time and ended up only ten points behind her in the second round.

"Nate! Why didn't you tell me he was gonna kick my butt?"

"You never asked Mitchie, you never asked," Nate responded through his laughter.

Once the game was over, the guys decided they wanted to do some site seeing.

"Ok, Mitchie where to?" Caitlyn asked.

"Well, if we were with real rock stars, I would say the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame, but we're with pop stars. They couldn't possibly be interested in that."

Nate and Shane's eyes got wide.

Mitchie laughed at their expression before heading out to the car. Shane ran to catch up with her while Nate and Caitlyn followed behind.

The drive passed fairly quickly and soon the group had entered the museum.

"Wow, Elvis actually wore that on tour," Shane commented.

"I can't believe we're actually here," Nate said, "It's always been a dream of mine, but this has been the first time we stayed here for more than a day."

Caitlyn was boggled over how many amazing recordings were on the wall, wishing she could just touch one of them.

Mitchie, having visited in previous years with a music class, just enjoyed listening to how amazed the others were. Shane had grabbed her hand and kept pulling her in different directions trying to take everything in. She did not mind this at all, it meant more time with Shane before they parted again.

"Ok. I need a picture of this," Mitchie commented, looking for someone to take the picture. She spotted a museum employee and pulled Nate and Caitlyn over to get into the picture. After the group picture was taken, Mitchie and Shane took several pictures together.

Caitlyn and Nate disappeared into another room, leaving Shane and Mitchie alone.

"We're finally alone," Shane said.

"Yea. So, what do you want to talk about?"

"I actually want to tell you something."

"Oh really. What?"

"I begged Brown to let me tell you or you would have heard about three weeks ago."

"Three weeks? You've talked to me in the last three weeks what have you been waiting for?" Mitchie exclaimed.

"I wanted to tell you in person."

"So are you going to tell me what's going on?"

"No. Now you're mad at me," Shane joked.

"Shane, just tell me. The suspense is killing me."

"Mitchie Torres, you have been asked to sing in the Marcy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York."

"No," Mitchie shouted.

"Yes," Shane sang back.

"Shhh…" An angry employee had just walked in hearing the noise.

Mitchie stood there in silence.

_I can't believe he just said what he said. There has to be some catch. Do I care if there's a catch? No. Ahhh! I can't believe it!_

"So, you're going to say yes right?" Shane asked, breaking the silence.

"Of course I'm going to say yes. What crazy person would turn down the Marcy's Day parade?"

Shane smiled.

"I'm glad you said that, because I just found out I won't be able to make it to Thanksgiving with Uncle Brown because I'm going to be in the parade too."

"You mean we get to spend Thanksgiving Day in the same city?"

"The very same," Shane said with a smile, "I was thinking, maybe we could merge our families together for Thanksgiving this year. Nate and Jason always stay with me over Thanksgiving because we're normally all in one spot. Our families normally come to us for Thanksgiving so maybe we could all do something big together."

Mitchie's head was spinning.

_I'm spending T__hanksgiving in New York, New York. I'm spending Thanksgiving with Shane in New York, New York. I'm singing in the biggest parade of the United States in three weeks and spending Thanksgiving with my potential boyfriend._

"Mitchie, you ok?"

* * *

Caitlyn and Nate disappeared into another room.

"Wow, this stuff is really cool," Caitlyn commented.

"Yea, I can't believe this is the first time I've ever gotten here."

"What's your favorite thing so far?"

"Well, if I had to pick, I would pick the display right in front of me."

Nate looked strait in Caitlyn's direction. Caitlyn looked behind her. There was an empty wall.

"An empty wall, that's really exciting," Caitlyn commented.

"No it's what's in front of the empty wall."

Caitlyn looked around. Nothing else was behind her or in front of her. Then the realization of what Nate had said hit.

"Me?"

"You," Nate responded, "Caitlyn I have to be honest with you. I really like you and talking to you on the phone has really made me happy."

"Really?"

"Yea. I know I'm out of town all the time and I don't really live anywhere near you when I _am_ at home, but I was wondering if you would…"

"If I would what, Nate?"

"I totally understand if you said no…"

"If I would what Nate?"

"If you would be my girlfriend," Nate finished, timidly.

Caitlyn threw her arms around him and held him in a bone crushing hug.

"Is that a yes?"

"Yes that's a yes. However, I want it to be like this."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't want the media following me everywhere. I don't want fame or death threats because you and I are dating."

"I understand and we can keep this quiet."

"You promise?"

"I promise to do my best to keep this under wraps, but can I tell Shane, Jason and my family?"

"You want to tell your family? About me?"

"Of course. You're important to me. Plus my sister will go crazy. Don't worry my parents will love you."

"Yea. Of course you can tell your family and band. Watch Jason though, he might let it slip."

"Yea. He almost admitted that Shane wrote 'Gotta Find You' about Mitchie a couple weeks ago to a reporter."

"That could have been really bad," Caitlyn said, looking worried.

"Don't worry. I care about you and I want you to be happy. If you don't want media, you won't get media."

Caitlyn smiled.

* * *

Mitchie shook the thoughts out of the way.

"Yea, I'm fine. I just…It's a lot to take in that's all."

"I understand."

"I should probably call my mom."

"She already knows."

"What? How does she already know?"

"She had to sign release forms as your legal guardian to send your songs out to the labels."

"Labels? As in plural? As in a label is sending me to the parade?"

"Well, sort of. Brown also sent a CD of you singing to the Marcy's Thanksgiving Day Parade committee. They are the ones you are working with."

"Oh," Mitchie said, feeling happy but a little down hearted.

_Well, I guess they haven't heard back from anyone yet. Brown didn't even tell me he sent a demo of me out. Wait a second…_

"You knew he sent a demo out for me? Why didn't you tell me?" Mitchie asked, smacking Shane's arm lightly.

"Ow… Brown forbade me to say anything to you. I honestly thought you knew about him sending them out. He told me he was going to tell you three weeks ago."

Mitchie nodded.

_This is going to be the best Thanksgiving of my life!_

Caitlyn and Nate came back in hand in hand.

"You guys ready to hit the road?" Nate asked.

Mitchie looked at the clock.

_9:30. It's still early._

"Sure," Shane said, grabbing Mitchie's hand and heading towards the exit.

"What are we doing now?" Mitchie asked.

"I thought we could go get some ice cream before we take you girls home. I know it's still early, but we can sit and talk some more. You still have to call the Marcy's Parade committee to tell them that you can do the parade," Shane explained.

"What am I gonna sing?"

"You should do 'Who Will I Be'" Nate said, coming up from behind with Caitlyn.

"You knew about this too?"

"No. I just picked it up from what you were saying. Brown sent a CD to Shane and I borrowed it."

"Oh."

_Shane has my demo CD? Brown sent it to him?_

"Do you have it with you?"

"Yea. It's actually in the CD player right now. I thought you would figure it out if I played it."

"Can we listen to it? I want to know what Brown did to my voice. He plays it back for me without messing with instruments except my guitar playing."

"Sure. He didn't do much, but if you really want to listen to yourself sing, I'm not opposed."

"Don't say it that way, Shane. You make me sound conceited."

Shane, Nate and Caitlyn laughed.

Ice Cream at MooLoo's made the group outing more than anyone had bargained for. As soon as Shane walked up to the counter to order, the adolescent behind it had recognized him.

"Y-you're Shane Gray."

"Nah, I just look like him," Shane tried to counter her; "The name is Theo."

Shane made to pull out his wallet but then thought better of it.

"Mitchie, do you have any cash on you?" Shane whispered into Mitchie's ear, "I'll pay you back later."

Mitchie pulled out her own wallet and paid for the ice cream cones before leading the way to a booth in the corner of the dairy shop.

Nate regretfully was not as smooth as Shane was.

"Ah! It's Nate from Connect 3!"

Everyone looked to the register as Nate grabbed Caitlyn's hand and made a break for the door, forgetting to grab his ice cream. Shane swiftly got up grabbing Mitchie's spare hand and ran towards the door. Flashes started to go off as the group raced towards the car in the dully lit parking lot.

"Is everyone in?" Shane asked, starting the car.

"Yes," the other three said simultaneously.

"Caitlyn, I…" Nate started, as Shane pulled away from the parking spot.

"Nate, it's fine. No one expected that, not even you. The place was dully lit anyways and there is no way that those camera phones could take a good shot with all four of us running."

Nate nodded, still visibly upset.

Shane decided that it was time for the girls to go back to Sierra's at that point. Much to Mitchie and Caitlyn's dismay Nate agreed with them.

The black jeep pulled into the driveway all too soon.

"Shane I don't want you to leave," Mitchie whined.

"I know you don't but we'll see each other again in three weeks. Thanksgiving is just around the corner and then you only have to wait two weeks until Christmas."

This did not cheer Mitchie up.

_I had so much fun and got to spend quality, almost uninterrupted time with Shane and now I won't see him for three whole weeks._

Shane saw the sad look on Mitchie's face.

"It's not like we won't talk between now and then. We have texting and e-mail, oh and I got a MyFace."

"You have one of those? Wait…How did you know I had one of those?"

"I missed your beautiful face," Shane admitted.

"Aw Shane stop. If you say anything more I don't think I'll be able to get out of the car."

"Ok. I'll stop."

Mitchie got out of the car and shut the door. Shane rolled down his window as she walked towards Sierra's house.

"Call me when you get back to camp tomorrow."

"I will," Mitchie responded with a sad smile.

* * *

"Nate, when are we going to see each other again? I have to be in Texas for Thanksgiving and you'll be in New York for the Marcy's Parade."

"I'll make it happen Caitlyn. We have a couple days off in two weeks. I'll take a flight out to visit with some excuse. With Shane's feelings for Mitchie I could probably convince him to come with and Jason would probably buy into a surprise visit to Camp Rock too."

"I don't know Nate. If you come to camp, won't media people know?"

"The media is not allowed on Camp Rock grounds. The only way anything could get out is by word of mouth and if we hang with Alicia and Mitchie it'll just look like I'm hanging out with friends."

Caitlyn nodded. She was surprised at how figured out Nate's plan was. She had never dated a guy that would do anything to be with her. Most guys she dated only lasted the summer anyway because of boarding school. Even then, her past boyfriends had avoided spending time with any of her other friends. She never expected to date someone so accepting. This was a dream come true he had a plan to see her and he was excited about it. Well, he was not known as "The Boss" for nothing.

Caitlyn gave Nate a hug before opening the door and leaving the jeep. She slowly followed Mitchie to the door where Kayla was waiting.

Her phone vibrated in her sweatshirt pocket.

_Call me when you get home._

* * *

"How did the dates go?" Kayla asked as Mitchie and Caitlyn reached the door.

"Really well up until the end," Mitchie responded, "Caitlyn?"

"Amazing, perfect, lovely," Caitlyn said in a dreamy state.

"Well, Sierra went over to John's for awhile. If you want I can call her home."

"How about we go get her?" Mitchie suggested.

Five minutes later Caitlyn and Mitchie were standing in front of Mitchie's old house.

* * *

**So??? What did you think? I know it's been awhile but I hope it was good. Please be brutally honest on reviews and thanks for reading!**

**Lacey**


	33. Flash

**Hey guys, sorry it took me so long with this but AP classes really take over your life. I hope you enjoy this. Please do me a favor and NEVER visit . You would be doing me and yourselves a HUGE favor.**

**

* * *

**

**LAST TIME**

"Well, Sierra went over to John's for awhile. If you want I can call her home."

"How about we go get her?" Mitchie suggested.

Five minutes later Caitlyn and Mitchie were standing in front of Mitchie's old house.

* * *

**NOW**

_Wow this is so weird. This is my house, but it's not. I have to ring the doorbell and wait for the door to open. I can't just walk in and see my mom in the kitchen down the hall. I never in a million years thought I would be coming back to this door._

Mitchie and Caitlyn reached the door. Mitchie put her hand up to the doorbell but could not bring herself to press it. Caitlyn reached over and pressed the button, seeing Mitchie's hesitation. Someone could be seen moving through the hallway through the windows next to the door. Lilac quickly opened it.

"Hey Caitlyn, hey Mitchie, what are you doing here?"

"Hi Lilac, we heard that Sierra was here."

"Yea, come on in and I go get her."

Mitchie and Caitlyn stepped into the entry way. Lilac shut the door behind them and headed down the hall to what Mitchie knew was the den. She came back several seconds later.

"John and Sierra are just finishing up a movie. Why don't you guys come and hang out with me for awhile. I'm putting some posters up in my room and I want to hear about your dates."

Lilac lead the way up the stairs to the room Mitchie had always thought of as hers. The funny thing was that Lilac did not change much about it. Purple walls remained, a dresser of the same size had been placed near the closet and Lilac's bed had been arranged the same way Mitchie had put hers. Instead of a keyboard in the corner, Lilac had and amp and a bass guitar.

"Cool. You play bass?" Caitlyn asked.

"Yea. I've been playing for about four years. Science is my passion, but I do enjoy music a lot too," Lilac responded, sitting down on her bed.

"So, you like purple?" Mitchie asked.

"I'm more of a blue fan, but I don't know…I think the color suits the room, don't you?"

"Yea," Mitchie responded.

_This is too weird. She must not know I was the one who moved out. My room looks the same as it did before I packed everything. I don't get it. Maybe Sierra helped her unpack._

As if she had read Mitchie's mind, Lilac said, "Sierra looked at some color swabs with me, but she said that the room had to stay purple. She even showed me the best arrangement for my furniture."

"Do you know who lived here before you?" Caitlyn asked, reading Mitchie's face while addressing Lilac.

"No. John said Sierra had talked to the past owner and set it up for my dad."

"I did," Mitchie said.

"You did what?" Lilac asked confused, "You knew the owner?"

"I was the owner. This was my room and Sierra's right, this is the only way the furniture fits and you have room to move around. The color on the walls probably stayed the same because Sierra made it sound like it shouldn't change. Am I right?"

Lilac nodded.

"It's cool if you like it, but if it's not you, you should change it."

Footsteps were heard down the hall and up to the door. There was a knock and a surprisingly attractive blonde came through the door.

"What do you want Carl?"

"I want to know where you put my computer. You borrowed it before the concert yesterday and never gave it back."

"I gave it to John to put back in your room. If it's not there, it's John's fault."

"Ok. So, who are your friends?"

"This is Caitlyn and Mitchie. Mitchie used to live here."

"That's cool. So who lived in the room next to this one? It looked like it belonged to some hot chick."

"Really, Carl? Out!"

"Oh come on, Lilac, I was just having a little fun."

"Out!"

Lilac pushed Carl out of the room and closed the door.

"Sorry, my brother is more of the jock in the house. He's a typical senior in high school. Only difference is he plays tennis."

Lilac, Caitlyn, and Mitchie burst into fits of laughter.

There was another knock at the door.

"Go away Carl!"

From the other side of the door there was a muffled voice, "It's not Carl. It's Sierra, can I come in?"

Lilac went to the door and opened it. Sierra walked through hand and hand with another tall, skinny blonde boy who looked like a slightly younger, scener version of Carl. He had long bangs that covered one eye and a beanie hat on his head.

"John, I'd like you to meet my very closest friend Mitchie and her friend from school Caitlyn."

John stepped forward and hugged both girls.

_Wow, a hug from a guy I don't even know. That's kind of awkward but nice._

"It's nice to meet you two. I've heard nothing but good things about Mitchie."

"Same here John. It's great to finally meet you."

"John, where's my computer?" Carl asked sticking his head back into the room.

"Oh, I think I took it down to the den, I'll find it," John said, kissing Sierra on the forehead and leaving the room.

"So what do you think?" Sierra asked Mitchie and Caitlyn.

"About John or the room?" Mitchie asked.

Sierra laughed at Mitchie's comment, "John of course Mitchie."

"He seems nice. He gives good hugs," Caitlyn commented.

"He does give good hugs," Mitchie agreed.

"How about looks?" Lilac asked.

"Lilac, that's your brother you're talking about," Sierra said, nudging her.

"So what? I put a lot of effort into his new look. I'm not going to settle for your opinion. You liked my brother before the hair cut, skater clothing and contacts."

"She speaks the truth," Sierra commented, "So what did you think looks wise?"

"I'm happy in the relationship I have, but he's definitely a looker," Caitlyn said.

"Yea, he looks pretty cute," Mitchie commented, her mind on Shane.

"Ok, so how were your dates?"

Mitchie and Caitlyn laughed together as all four sat down on the bed.

Caitlyn went first explaining most of the date from what happened from her perspective leaving out only the detail that Nate had asked her to be his girlfriend. She would only be telling Mitchie about that. Then it was Mitchie's turn. She told them about Shane wanting to spend time with her over Thanksgiving but kept the exciting details of the Marcy's Day parade to herself. She had planned on telling Sierra but did not want too many people to know until they watched on Thanksgiving morning.

Sierra's mom called the girls home shortly after the date recap and the girls said goodbye to Lilac. John, fully clad in pajamas with beakers all over them, met the girls on the staircase. He blushed muttered something and ran up the remainder of the steps. Mitchie looked over at Sierra to find her friends face to be crimson.

One the girls had left the house and begun their walk back to Sierra's Mitchie opened her mouth.

"You, Sierra, John might be just perfect for, right down to the science nerd jamies."

Sierra began laughing and Caitlyn joined in. The girls reached the house and were greeted by Kayla.

"Did you girls have a good time?"

The girls nodded and headed for Sierra's room.

"Do you girls want anything before I go to bed? Popcorn, cookies, frozen pizza?"

"No thanks, Mom. Goodnight," Sierra said from the top of the stairs.

Sierra turned on her TV and the girls watched late night TV until they fell asleep.

* * *

'_Hey you, don't let 'em see you frown, Come on turn it upside down. Don't ever quit, get up, get up. When life, puts you to the test, there's nothing better than your best. Show 'em what you got, you got a lot. Show 'em what you got, get up, get up. Get up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up.'_

_Ugg. I have to get up? Now? But that was such a good dream…I was going to spend Thanksgiving in New York, with Shane. We had a successful date. It would be cool though, to be singing in the Marcy's day parade…It would explain Shane's lack of explanation and Brown's odd behavior lately._

Mitchie felt a pillow thrown in her face.

_It's time to wake up and spend a lovely Saturday afternoon with my two best friends. Shane's off to the next state on his tour and I'll see him at camp over Thanksgiving._

"Mitchie get up. You're gonna make us late for church," Sierra was saying.

"Don't be ridiculous. It's only Saturday we never go to church on Saturdays unless we have band rehearsal."

"Mitchie don't be silly. It's Sunday, yesterday we slept and went bowling with Shane and Nate," Caitlyn fought.

Mitchie's eyes shot open.

"That really happened? That wasn't a dream?"

"Of course not, now get up and get dressed."

Mitchie shot out of her sleeping bag and headed for her suitcase. When she had found something suitable she ran to the bathroom took a quick shower and headed down to the kitchen.

Everyone was sitting at the table eating pancakes and talking quietly about the concert the Friday before.

"Mom, you should have seen it. The stunts they did with instruments in their hands, the flips, and the vocal range. Everything was so insane."

"Good morning Mitchie," Kayla said, as Mitchie sat down in the open chair at the table.

"Good morning. What time are we leaving for church?"

"As soon as you finish your pancakes," Sierra responded.

Sierra was always on time. She could never be late for anything. She had tried once or twice, but still end up on time.

"I know this is going to sound a little weird, but I was just wondering, Sierra, where's your dad?" Caitlyn asked.

"He's already at church. He's the senior pastor so he spends the weekends perfecting his sermon. Dad came home while we were at the concert and was at work when we got back. Then when we got back from John's later he was asleep. Don't worry you'll meet him later," Sierra explained.

The four climbed out of the car twenty minutes later at the church.

_Just how I left it._

Sierra led the way to the left side of the sanctuary (the places where the sermons take place). She sat down in the front row and Mitchie and Caitlyn followed. Mitchie saw that Caitlyn was uncomfortable and gave her a one armed hug. Not everyone was used to sitting in the front row. In fact, Mitchie had sat there only when her mother and father couldn't make it to church.

A man with glasses and short curly hair approached Sierra and said good morning. Sierra got up and gave him a hug.

"Mitchie so good to see you," the man said, leaning over to give Mitchie a fatherly hug, "Who's your friend?"

"Robbie, this is Caitlyn. Caitlyn this is Robbie, Sierra's dad. He goes by Pastor Rob when he's on the podium but I couldn't say Rob when I was little so he's been Robbie since I was one and a half."

"Nice to meet you Caitlyn," Robbie said, reaching for her hand.

"You too, Pastor Rob," Caitlyn said, taking his hand and shaking it.

Lilac, John and Carl came up and took seats in the row behind the girls. Slowly the sanctuary filled up and music began to play.

_We are traveling in the footsteps/ Of those who've gone before/ But we'll all be reunited (but if we stand reunited)/ On a new and sunlit shore (then a new world is in store)_

_Oh when the saints go marching in/ When the saints go marching in/ Oh lord I want to be in that number/ When the saints go marching in_

_And when the sun refuse (begins) to shine/ And when the sun refuse (begins) to shine/ Oh lord I want to be in that number/ When the saints go marching in_

_When the moon turns red with blood/ When the moon turns red with blood/ Oh lord I want to be in that number/ When the saints go marching in_

_On that hallelujah day/ On that hallelujah day/ Oh lord I want to be in that number/ When the saints go marching in_

_Oh when the trumpet sounds the call/ Oh when the trumpet sounds the call/ Oh lord I want to be in that number/ When the saints go marching in_

_Some say this world of trouble/ Is the only one we need/ But I'm waiting for that morning__When the new world is revealed  
When the revelation (revolution) comes/ When the revelation (revolution) comes/ Oh lord I want to be in that number/ When the saints go marching in_

_When the rich go out and work/ When the rich go out and work/ Oh lord I want to be in that number/ When the saints go marching in_

_When the air is pure and clean/ When the air is pure and clean/ Oh lord I want to be in that number/ When the saints go marching in_

_When we all have food to eat/ When we all have food to eat/ Oh lord I want to be in that number/ When the saints go marching in_

_When our leaders learn to cry/ When our leaders learn to cry/ Oh lord I want to be in that number/ When the saints go marching in_

The song ended and another one began. This one contained a faster beat and people began to clap along. Several more songs were played while the words were projected onto a screen.

Afterwards Robbie took the stage to welcome everyone and share several announcements. The announcements went by fast and then people began to get up and say hello to each other.

Mitchie got up and Caitlyn looked around confused.

"It's called meet and greet. We get up and say hello to people before we start our lesson," Sierra explained getting up as well.

"Oh," Caitlyn responded.

Many people approached Mitchie to say hello, although the majority of them were older people everyone seemed happy to see her. They asked about school, her parents, why she had not been to church in awhile, and who her friend was. Mitchie introduced Caitlyn to the people and explained what had happened since she left for summer camp several months ago. By the time meet and greet was over Caitlyn knew Sierra's last three boyfriends, the drugstore owner, and several people Mitchie had volunteered for or song for at birthday parties and such.

"Wow Mitchie, for a girl with only a couple friends in town you really have a following," Caitlyn commented.

"Yea, well, if you didn't notice it's mostly my parent's friends and mothers of kids I babysat for."

Caitlyn sighed as Pastor Rob took the stage and began to preach.

* * *

_So Mitchie sang for birthday parties. That's cool. She probably did a couple acoustic songs. It'll be amazing when they see the same girl in the Marcy's day parade in two weeks. Gosh, I wish I was going. Too bad Mom and Dad are going to be in Texas over break. If only they were doing something big in New York, then I could see Mitchie perform and get to spend time with Nate._

_I guess I'll spend the holidays with my parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles talking about business and how music shouldn't be my priority. Mom and Dad support it, but Uncle Mike and Aunt Barb will be talking about how insanely smart Jack is and how he's making it in the doctor world of gynecology. Aunt Tina will go on about Danni and her career molding the minds of the future in that brainiac school she teaches in. Of course they'll forget that I'm in the room and talk about how unsuited the music business is for a career and how amazing their kids are in the different lifestyles they picked._

Caitlyn's mind ran in circles as Pastor Rob spoke. He was speaking on joy and Caitlyn was trying to listen but struggling. The real problem was that she didn't feel like she could be joyful at a time like this. Pastor Rob spoke on 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 _(Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.)_

Caitlyn found a Bible under the seat and pulled it out.

_Maybe if I read along it'll take my mind off things._

She found the page that Pastor Rob was speaking on and read it over and over again. She finally understood what she needed to do.

_Grin and bare it. Be glad that this is the worst that's going on. Be glad you can even see your parents over break, _Caitlyn argued with herself.

The sermon ended only seconds after Caitlyn's epiphany and everyone started getting to their feet. Mitchie pulled Caitlyn up from her seat and dragged her out of the sanctuary, down a hallway and into a small room with mismatched couches and a big blank wall.

* * *

Mitchie stepped away from Caitlyn and took a seat on a red and blue patterned couch.

"This is the youth room. Make yourself comfortable."

The youth class passed quickly and before Mitchie knew it, she was in Kayla's car with Sierra and Caitlyn on the way to the train station.

_Wow the weekend went by so fast. I can't believe it's already over. I wonder what Shane is doing right now…_

* * *

_Bounce, bounce, bounce, bounce._

"Are you really that bored?" Nate asked, looking down from his bunk.

"Yes," Shane groaned.

"Why don't you help Jason with his birdhouse or tape a TeenTube video to show fans what the tour bus is like."

"But what do I say to the fans? Hey we spend a lot of time on a bus bored out of our minds so I thought I'd show you around."

"Yea, only more positive," Nate commented.

"Fine. Jason, where's the camera?"

Jason came over to the bunk beds and handed the camera to Shane.

"Just let me know when you want to upload it. I'll show you how."

"Thanks," Shane said taking the camera and standing up.

He turned it on and went to the front of the bus.

"Hey guys its Shane here and I wanted to show you some place that is really important to us when we are on the road. Our tour bus is a space that the three of us spend about forty hours a week. When we aren't on stage, rehearsing, or site seeing we are here. Normally we watch a little television, work on music, or play video games, but today you guys are in for a treat. Let's go see what Jason is up to."

Shane walked away from the door and turned the camera to the table where Jason sat working on his bird house.

"So Jason what are you working on?"

"I'm making a bird house for the next talk show we go on."

"Why?"

"Well, Shane, there is always a question about my hobbies and what we do when we're on the road so I thought if I brought a birdhouse in maybe I could give them a little keep sake item."

"That's really cool."

"Yea, if any of you fans have any suggestions of what color I should paint it just leave a comment," Jason added with a smile.

"Thanks Jason, we're going to go find Nate now."

"Ok. See ya later."

Shane continued down the bus pointing out the lounge area to the viewers and then he reached the bunks.

"This is my favorite spot on the bus: the bunk beds. Each of us has our own bed with enough space to spread out and take a nap. Sleep is very important when we are switching time zones a lot."

Shane showed them his bunk and Jason's before pointing the camera up to Nate's bunk.

"Hey Nate, what's up?"

"I'm working on my math homework. Even though I'm on the road, I still have to keep up with school. My mom is very into brilliance so school work is very important to me."

"That's awesome. So can we see your bunk? What makes it special for you?"

"Well, Shane, if you must know," Nate joked, "I have some picture of friends from home and even some fan gifts that I put on a bulletin board up here."

"That's cool."

"Did you show them your pictures from this summer?"

"Oh yea that would be fun," Shane responded, pausing the tape player and digging out his photo album from Camp Rock.

Shane pressed record and pointed the camera at the pages.

"This is the front of the camp. I wasn't in a very good mood so Nate took the first couple pictures," he turned the page, "These are some of my students. I taught hip hop and a lot of the kids there are really talented."

Shane went through most of the album, flipping quickly past the pages with him and Mitchie on them.

He had taken several on the boat trip with her the last night at camp and on their little trip when they bonded halfway through camp.

_Man I miss her. I can't wait to see those beautiful brown eyes in two weeks for thanks giving. She's so beautiful and her voice is so…wow and she's so smart and funny and sweet. Wow I sound like a girl…Is this what love is? Wait… I can't call this love, we aren't even officially dating. Tess is still my decoy what's going on???_

Shane turned off the camera and went to find his lap top.

"Jason, let's get this up on the web."

Jason moved his bird house and Shane handed him the camera.

"Ok so you plug the USB cord into the computer and then you press the 'e' on the screen."

"You mean the explorer browser?"

"So that's what 'e' stands for…"

"Now what Jason?"

"Ok so go to .like"

"Dot like?"

"Yea it's a new user friendly children, preteen, teen way of doing things. Dot com's can come up with all sorts of inappropriate things."

"Cool. Alright now what?" Shane asked pulling up the web address.

"Now we press upload on the camera and it should go up in the next couple minutes."

Shane did as he was told and to his surprise it worked. Jason had had a smart moment. Even though they were rare, sometimes they were really good.

Shane put the camera away and went back to his bunk.

_Bounce, bounce, bounce, bounce._

"Really? Do you have to bounce the ball on my bed?"

"Where else am I supposed to bounce it?"

"Um. The floor maybe," Nate whined sarcastically.

"It's not as much fun," Shane commented.

"Why not read a book? I have a ton in my trunk. Go find one that sounds interesting."

Shane sighed.

_Maybe a book will keep my mind off Mitchie. Yea, that should work. What's this book? Moby Dick… nah I heard it was boring. How about Comedy of Errors? Shakespeare? Not my style but let's see._

Shane sat down on his bed and began to read. The unfortunate problem was that Shane was a speed reader and he finished the book within an hour.

"Jason do you mind me turning on the TV?"

"What happened to the book?" Nate asked.

"I'm done."

Nate rolled his eyes and went back to his math work.

* * *

The girls reached the train station and with a hug to Sierra and Kayla, Mitchie and Caitlyn entered the station with their bags.

Suddenly flashes went off.

"Mitchie how do you know Shane?"

"Mitchie who's your friend?"

"Mitchie what is your connection to Tess Tyler?"

* * *

**Ok guys, I'm ready for brutal honesty here. I hope you like it, but please tell me if you didn't. What color should Jason paint his bird house? How do the paparazzi know Mitchie's name?**


	34. The Wet Beach Towel

**Sorry guys. I know it's been an insanely long time since I have updated. School took over for awhile and I'm taking a Short Story class so a lot of my creativity went towards writing a Horror Story. It turned out great if I do say so myself. Anyways, with out further adu i give you Chapter 34****

* * *

LAST TIME**

Suddenly flashes went off.

"Mitchie how do you know Shane?"

"Mitchie who's your friend?"

"Mitchie what is your connection to Tess Tyler?"

* * *

**NOW**

Shane, thoroughly bored after his little video, plopped down on the couch and turned on the television. After flicking through several news and wildlife channels, _Jason was the last one here…ugg, _something caught Shane's eye.

Normally, he tried to ignore A! News, but this morning something stopped him. That something was a picture and that picture was a picture of him and Mitchie.

_What the heck is going on? I don't get it? That's from the filming. The music video was a closed set! Who was stupid enough to let a photographer in? That's the scene where we fake a kiss. How? How?_

'_Who is she? That's the question everyone has been asking since this photo appeared on Pop Informer Magazine's desk this morning. Insiders tell us that this is Mitchie Torres, daughter of a caterer and a hardware store owner.'_

Jason looked over at the television from his place at the table.

"Did they just say Mitchie Torres?"

"Get Nate," Shane ordered, continuing to listen to what the reporter said.

'_The caterer happens to be the very one that catered Camp Rock, the legendary place where Connect Three got their start. Now everyone is wondering where the picture came from and what Tess will say about this. I'm Julia Cass, have a great day.'_

Jason re-entered the room and Shane pulled out his phone.

_Ring, ring, ring._

_Hello?_

"We have a problem with the fake dating plan. You might have to get a little more involved than I thought."

_Shane?_

"Mitchie was just on A! News. I don't know where the picture came from, but it makes it look like I'm two timing you."

_Why don't we just call it quits and say that I met someone else. That way it doesn't look like you ditched me for her. You know, I am supposed to be the rebound girl anyway. My relationship with you shouldn't last too long._

"I guess that would work, it's just that that statement should have been out before the picture. You could say that you were present when the picture was taken. It's a music video still after all."

_Just tell me what to do, Shane. I've got your and Mitchie's back._

"Thanks Tess. And thanks for being such a good person about this. Maybe we _can_ be friends."

_I'm glad to hear that. Now what do you want to do?_

"Well, for the publicity sake I think you should break up with me. I'll just act like I bounce back really quick and you just need to find a guy to start dating."

_I did have someone in mind. You think that Nick James would go out with me?_

"I think you show great potential in a date with him," Shane said, "Wait, this is getting too weird. Ask him out and stop making me feel all girly."

Shane heard Tess laugh and then she said goodbye before the line went dead.

* * *

Mitchie raced to the train holding in one hand her suitcase and in the other, Caitlyn's hand.

_What's going on? How did they know I was here? How do they even know my name?_

Once safely inside an empty compartment in the train, Mitchie called Shane.

_Hi. Did you see A! News this morning? We were on it!_

"Normally I'd be excited for you, Shane, but right now we have something to worry about."

_WE were on A! News this morning, Mitchie. WE as in you and I._

"W-what? How is that even possible? We were so careful on our date and no one even saw my face when we did get caught."

_I know, but some one snapped a picture of us when we were filming the music video and everything went all wrong. Are you with Caitlyn?_

"Yea. They didn't recognize her. Somehow they linked me to Tess, but I still don't get it. We were the only ones on set, you, Lilac, Nate, Caitlyn, Jason, Sierra and me. Unless some one on your end did something… what did they say about me exactly?"

_I'll get it wrong if I try to explain it. Tell Caitlyn to look it up on her computer. There is probably enough Wi-Fi to get the internet to work while you are traveling. The point is, Tess and I are faking a break up. I'll pin it on her because she has an idea who she can get to date her._

"Ok. Sounds great but what am I supposed to do? I can't live on this train and they know where I'm going if they knew I would be at the station. Shane, Caitlyn and I need to get back to school in one piece."

_I know, I know. Maybe Brown or your dad can meet you at the station. I'll make a couple calls and see what I can do. Right now, just relax and breathe easy._

"That's not an easy task, but I'll try."

_I gotta go, but call me if you need too._

"Ok. Bye Shane."

_Bye Mitchie. Be careful._

There was a click and Mitchie looked around. Caitlyn had taken a seat next to Mitchie and pulled out her computer to see if she could find anything new on Shane or Tess.

"Mitchie, look what I found. I thought it was a closed set."

"It was. Caitlyn, do you remember who watched this scene as it was filmed?"

"Well, not many people, I think it was just me, Sierra, and Lilac, then of course the producer and the camera man. Who could have done this? Sierra would never and you know I wouldn't."

"Lilac… I thought she was a good person."

"Now, Mitchie don't jump to conclusions, maybe there was someone else. Maybe I'm missing someone in my count of people."

"No Caitlyn. You're right. I remember now. Lilac had pulled her phone out. I thought she was just texting and I'm sure that's why no one stopped her. I should have known. She hangs out with Katrina; nothing good ever comes from that."

"Call Sierra if you must," Caitlyn sighed.

_Ring, ring, ring._

_Mitchie? Didn't I just leave you? You miss me already?_

"There's a problem, Sierra."

_What problem? Did you miss your train? Do you need us to turn around and come get you?_

"No. Caitlyn and I made the train, but paparazzi followed us. I don't know how they know I exist, but I need to know if you remember who was in the room when Shane and I filmed the kissing scene for the music video."

_Yea of course. It was the producer, the video guy, Caitlyn, me, and Lilac. I remember thinking I should call my mom when Lilac pulled out her…phone. Oh Mitchie…_

"Did you see her take a picture?"

_I did, but I thought she was just taking it of Shane for her blog or something. Do you know anything about why the paparazzi are following you?_

"I called Shane and he said that there's a picture of me on the web of us leaning in to kiss."

_What do you want me to do Mitchie? I'm here for you. I can't believe she did that, but I'll do whatever I can to fix this for you._

"Thanks Sierra. You're the best. I just was hoping Lilac was a decent person. What are you going to do about her? She's John's sister."

_I don't know. This is all happening so quickly. I have a date with John tonight…maybe I should cancel…_

"No. John isn't the reason I'm in trouble. Go and have fun. Don't bring this up to him if you can help it. As far as he's concerned I'm just your friend who lived in his house. Got it?"

_I guess. I gotta go, Mom's asking all these questions. Call me if you need anything._

"Bye Sierra."

_Bye Mitchie._

Mitchie and Caitlyn spent the remainder of the train ride searching the internet to see what it said about her. Both girls concluded that the paparazzi would be easy to avoid if they were picked up by someone inconspicuous.

To everyone, Mr. Torres was a nobody. He would go to the station and pick up two girls and bring them to Camp Rock. No one would have to know who he was picking up, and if they were lucky, no one would care.

Caitlyn pulled out her make up bag and got to work. Mitchie began sneezing as loads of blush, eye shadow, and foundation were applied to her face. Caitlyn also pulled out a blonde wig from her bag. Mitchie began to question but Caitlyn covered her mouth and then covered her head with the wig.

"If anyone overhears us you're toast."

"It's a closed compartment, the chances of that are slim. So, do I make a convincing blonde?"

"Why don't you look for yourself," Caitlyn said, handing Mitchie a mirror.

"Wow. I guess I can pull it off. Well, with all the makeup anyway. Where did you find such a blonde wig anyway?"

"My roommate last year gave it to me. She was Hannah Montana for Halloween. Did you ever think that Hannah might actually be wearing a wig? I mean, she could easily get away with it."

"Yea, but I'm pretty sure you can't get away with things like that especially when you're seen with Jake Ryan. How could he miss that?"

Caitlyn laughed as the train came to a halt.

"One more stop," Mitchie commented.

"Now it's time for me to fix myself."

"Why?"

"They saw me with you, now we're linked."

"I never thought of that. How do you think they linked me with Tess?"

"Maybe because you went to camp together or maybe the snitch that sent the picture in gave a couple quotes to the picture hoping for their own shot at fame."

Mitchie sighed. Everything was so much more complicated that it had to be. She slowly started regretting the game of hide and seek she had been playing.

"Caitlyn," Mitchie asked.

"What?"

"Do you- do you think I made the right decision?"

"What do you mean?"

"Do you think I made the right decision holding off my relationship with Shane?"

"Actually I do."

"Really? Why?"

"Look at the facts, Mitchie. If you had dated Shane right after camp, Rachel would be all over you right now, paparazzi would have taken over our double date or we wouldn't have been able to go at all, you have a deal to sing at an amazing place over Thanksgiving and you aren't linked to Shane in that, and you got to make sure that your feelings were more than physical attraction. The fact that you did not link yourself outwardly to fame also proves to Shane that you don't want him for his money or fame."

"Thanks Caitlyn. I guess you're right."

"Anytime, now will you help me with this black wig?"

Mitchie took the wig and covered Caitlyn's curls with ease as the train pulled into the station. Caitlyn quickly closed her suitcase and makeup bag and headed for the exit. Mitchie followed her with hesitation.

When Mitchie reached the open air, there her dad was waiting on the platform. He was alone, but only five yards away many people with cameras looked uninterested waiting for a brunette to come out with her curly haired acquaintance. As the girls approached Mitchie's father he completely ignored them.

"Sir, are you looking for someone?"

"Yes," her father answered.

"Would she be Mitchie Torres?" Mitchie asked in a tone only slightly above a whisper.

"She might be," her dad answered uncomfortably.

"Would she have an amazing friend who owns two wigs and has an amazing talent with make up?"

"Well," Mr. Torres said, looking surprised, "Let's go then."

Caitlyn and Mitchie giggled as Mr. Torres lead the way out of the station, to his pick-up truck. As soon as the girls were safely inside the cab and Mr. Torres had backed out, the girls removed their wigs.

"Hi Daddy," Mitchie said with a smile.

"Hi Pumpkin, how was the concert?"

"Amazing," Caitlyn interjected, "We were so close we got to see the sweat on their foreheads."

"Caitlyn," Mitchie scolded, "We were really close Daddy. The guys were really nice too. Shane and Nate took us out for bowling, dinner, and ice cream yesterday night."

"Sounds like fun. When am I going to meet these boys? I'm not sure I like the idea of you running around with a bunch of rock stars. Didn't that Shane fellow have a bad reputation?"

"Daddy, Shane has changed a whole bunch and you'll meet them at Thanksgiving dinner. Connect 3 is playing in the Marcy's Day parade and…SO AM I!"

"That's terrific honey! How did you manage that?"

"You really didn't know, Dad?"

"No. Your mother said we were going to spend Thanksgiving in New York because she was asked to cater for Connect 3. She didn't say that you were singing! I'm so proud of you! What are you going to sing?"

"I'm not sure yet, but Caitlyn will help me out. Won't you Caitlyn?"

"Of course I will. We'll start mixing as soon as you pick the song you want to sing."

"Terrific!"

Mr. Torres pulled up to the camp as the conversation came to an end.

"Make sure mom knows you're back and say hi to her for me. I'll see you next weekend, Pumpkin. Caitlyn, you're always welcome at the Torres house."

"Thank you Mr. Torres. I might take you up on that offer more often than you think."

Caitlyn hopped out of the truck followed by Mitchie. Once the two had grabbed their stuff and waved goodbye, Mr. Torres headed back to the house in his truck.

"Mitchie! Is it true is Shane two timing Tess with you?" Abigail asked running up to the girls as they reached the cabin.

"Abby, you know it's not. Tess is a decoy remember."

"I know, but my sister has been in my cabin waiting for you to get back all day. She wants to talk to you about it. Rachel wants you to get Shane!" Abigail explained quietly as she helped Caitlyn carry a bag up the porch steps.

"Really? Wow. I never thought that would happen," Caitlyn commented.

Rachel came out the doors at that moment.

"Hey girls, how was the concert?"

"It was great Rachel. How are you?" Mitchie asked.

"I'm doing alright. I got a call from Tyler today."

"Tyler who?" Caitlyn asked.

"Tyler freaking Steel!"

"Oh my gosh, you guys are so perfect," Mitchie commented.

"Yea, and he asked me out for next weekend. He's coming here and we're going to hang out in the little town by your place. Your mom and dad said that he could stay with them over the weekend."

"You mean that Tyler Steel will be living in my guest room next weekend?"

Rachel nodded excitedly.

"Did she mention she's excited," Abigail joked.

"Come on, let's get inside. It's kind of chilly out here," Caitlyn suggested.

The girls entered the cabin and placed their stuff on their beds.

"Hey Mitchie, I know you're mom is going to need you in an hour for dinner, but would you like to go for a walk?" Rachel asked.

"Um… yea, sure. I guess we'll catch you guys later. Caitlyn don't say a thing until Alicia's back from her cousins'."

Caitlyn gave Mitchie a thumbs-up as Mitchie and Rachel exited the cabin and began their walk.

"So, have you seen A! News today?" Rachel asked.

"No, but I heard about it, and for the first time I know what it's like to be followed by paparazzi. I'm not sure I like it."

"So, what's the truth? Are you and Shane dating?"

_The truth, how do I put this so it doesn't sound bad? I can't say I lied to her…_

"No. We are not dating. We were shooting something for his new music video and someone took the shot."

"Oh. So you're saying you and Shane don't have feelings for each other."

"Rachel…"

"Don't deny it. I have someone new in my life. I'm not going to kill you for dating my ex-boyfriend. If it seems a little weird, it's not. Shane and I weren't right for each other."

"Ok. So I like him, but he has Tess right now" Mitchie said, hesitantly.

"Tess isn't really his type anyway. She's more Nick James' type."

"Well, for now, I don't think it would be right for us to date. I just found out that I'll be singing in the Marcy's Day parade and I don't want to be known as Shane's girlfriend when I get on that float."

"I understand. It's just that, every time I mention him you go all red and I know that you talk about him all the time because any time I enter a room you and Caitlyn just stop talking."

"Sorry. We were trying to spare your feelings."

"It's fine. I get why you did it. Wait, so are you really Shane's Spanish tutor?"

"Yes but I wasn't until Abby said I was. Tess is helping him with it too. Nate is taking it online for homeschooling and Shane is trying to follow along."

Rachel laughed to herself.

"Shane is horrible with foreign language. When we were doing publicity in Italy he said a 'your mom' joke instead of saying 'thank you for having us.' Nate set him up but, he's kind of a lost cause so good luck with that."

Mitchie joined in Rachel's laughter.

"So you're not mad that Shane and I might end up together?"

"Of course I'm not. In fact, when I found out he had a girlfriend I was hoping it was someone down to earth and out of the limelight. When I figured out it was someone from Camp Rock and met you, I was kinda hoping that it was you. When I met you, you were helping my little sister find me. She was so excited that she had made a friend that knew the campus well.

"Later when you freaked out about the final jam CD, I realized how humble you were. You're considerate too because you felt bad that you stopped the music that I was enjoying so you played for me. Then you were nervous and excited about it which showed me your drive to succeed. Shane and you were talking on the phone and you blushed a little when I asked if it was him."

"Wow, you noticed all that?"

"It was hard not to. I got used to the fan girls being all over my boyfriend, but you didn't act like that. You acted like he really was your friend, not like you wanted anything out of him. That is something I rarely saw when we were dating. Even we weren't really good friends. Most of our romance was to promote my CD and to keep him from his bad boy image, what good that did…"

"So, you really weren't in love with him?"

"No… I was in love with the idea of him. The idea of having the guy everyone wanted. Dating the bad boy that no one expected. To be honest he was gentler before we started dating. The push by the producers just made him more upset. We talked, but it was all about how much he hated what his publisher was doing."

"Wow. He told me that he felt like everyone wanted something from him. He, he said that I was different because I didn't want anything. I don't know what I did to help him. I just wanted to make a friend. Of course I knew who I was making friends with, but our friendship just sort of happened."

"Really? Mitchie, do you believe in fate?"

"Kinda. I guess I believe things happen for a reason, but I wouldn't call it fate."

"Well, you met Shane for a reason. Last June, if he had broken up with me it would have left me broken and I would have been more upset about the break up than I was. He was kind about it. He said it wasn't working, he wanted to be fair to me and it was over. Although it was a pretty quick thing with me not saying much, I respect his decision and how he came to it. I wrote a couple songs, and I'm over him."

"You wrote some pretty good songs if I might say so myself. When is your CD coming out again?"

"Tomorrow actually! I'm doing a live web feed to my cabin and I have about twenty press conferences. Hey, do you mind leading Guitar tomorrow? You know everything I would be able to teach you."

"Sure. Extra credit?" Mitchie joked.

"Of course, though, you don't need it."

"Hey Rachel, I've been meaning to ask you… why did you tell me not to come to class the first week?"

"Ok. I guess I need to come clean. You know that interview when Shane and Tess kissed?"

"Yea, what about it?"

"Well, I was a little upset about it so I went for a swim in the lake. I kind of overheard you talking to Caitlyn about Shane."

Rachel explained what she had heard. Mitchie recalled the conversation easily.

* * *

**FLASH BACK **_(Mitchie Style)_

"_Yea. Shane was going to come down here and try to fix everything."_

"_Why did you stop him? Don't you think he kinda owes it to you?"_

"_Nate begged me to stop him from coming here because of the effect it would have on the band and the tour. I even told him that I was planning on not calling but Nate literally begged me."_

"_So what did you talk to Shane about?"_

_Mitchie explained the situation as they reached the lake and headed north around it. _

* * *

"Wow, Rachel, you're really sneaky."

"I pride myself in being invisible. Sometimes it's a good thing other times it's not that great. I'm sure you remember my song Invisible."

"I do. It's very nice."

Just then Mitchie's phone began to ring.

'_Everything is different, why do things change? I'm still standing here, but you've walked away. Everything is nothing now that I see, everything we are is everything we're gonna be.'_

"Shane?"

_Hey I just wanted to make sure you got back to camp ok. After the train I didn't hear from you._

"Sorry, after I got back Rachel asked me to go for a walk and I kinda got sidetracked."

_So, what did she want to talk about?_

"Us. Well, mostly me."

_Does she know everything?_

"No, but most of it."

_The Tess thing?_

"No. That I skipped over. Shane, I have to get to the kitchen can I call you later tonight?"

_Yea, that's fine. Oh and by the way the plane tickets are bought for you and your parents to New York in two weeks. My mom called your mom and your mom volunteered to cook Thanksgiving for everyone. I guess we will be spending the holidays together!_

"Great. I'll call you later."

_Ok. I'll miss you._

"Oh, really? Well, bye."

"Shane?"

"Yep. I really gotta get to my mom, but if you want to continue this talk later that's cool. I want to here about Tyler Steel!"

Rachel and Mitchie said their goodbyes and Mitchie headed to the kitchen, a gentle breeze blowing the hair out of her face as she went.

_Wow it's getting cold out. Maybe we'll get snow by Thanksgiving. I should probably trade out my fall clothes for something a little warmer next weekend. Next weekend…Tyler Steel…Tyler Steel in my house…I think I'm going to have Caitlyn sleep over. I don't know how I'm supposed to handle that alone. I'll ask her tomorrow. Tomorrow…did I really just tell Rachel I could teach her class? Oh my gosh! What am I gonna do?_

Mitchie reached the kitchen where she could hear Connect 3 music playing from within.

"Hey Mom. I'm here reporting for duty."

"Hi Sweetie. Welcome back. How was the concert?"

"It was amazing, fantastic, magical…"

"A break from kitchen duty…Can you start putting pepperoni on these pizzas?"

"Sure," Mitchie laughed at how her mom cut her off.

"So did you and Shane get to talk?"

"Mom!" Mitchie's face when from perfectly pink to ruby red in two seconds flat.

"Come on Mitchie. I'm your mother; we can talk about these things without it being weird. It's not like I haven't met the guy."

"I guess. Well, Shane and I did get to talk. He actually took me and Caitlyn bowling yesterday night with Nate. Oh and why didn't you tell me I got a deal with the Marcy's Day Parade Committee? I get to sing for Thanksgiving! Mom I'm so excited, what am I gonna wear? How should I do my hair? What should I sing? Oh, how could today get any better?"

"Did you hear that the movie star Tyler Steel was going to stay at our house next weekend?"

"Yes I did and I'm kinda nervous about that. Dad might embarrass me."

"Honey, your father isn't that embarrassing and Tyler's coming to hang our with Rachel so he probably will only sleep at the house."

"I guess. Can Caitlyn sleepover next weekend? I thought it would make it less awkward for me if I had a friend to cope with me."

"Of course, but I have some more news," Connie enthused.

"What?"

"Nate called last night and asked if he and the boys could stay with us the week before Thanksgiving. They don't have a concert that weekend and he said he and the boys wanted to surprise the camp with a concert Friday night."

"Really? Does that mean that Shane, Nate and Jason are sleeping over the weekend after next?"

Connie smiled and nodded. The air was full of excited silence as the two girls finished their work. Mitchie then said goodbye to her mother and headed out to the mess hall.

She found Caitlyn sitting at a table with her computer out. Caitlyn was by herself, but she seemed so deep into what she was doing that even when Mitchie came to sit with her she didn't notice.

"Hey, what's up?" Mitchie asked after about three minutes of being unintentionally ignored.

Caitlyn jumped, realizing she wasn't alone.

"Oh, I'm just working on a playlist of your songs that Brown gave me. He said he wanted me to do the mixing for your debut to the world. Have you decided what you want to sing yet?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe I should do Who Will I Be. I mean, it's what got me to this point in my musical journey isn't it?"

"That's a good point. So how do you want it mixed? A balled or something fast paced?"

"I was thinking fast paced."

Monday afternoon went better than Mitchie expected. With Rachel gone, Mitchie taught a new chord and a new strumming pattern. Rachel rewarded her with a new Rachel Anadeski CD as well as an MP3 player.

The rest of the week went quickly, the girls spent their free time working on Mitchie's song and making sure it was perfect for the Marcy's Thanksgiving Day Parade while also doing the tons of homework the teachers had assigned before break.

Caitlyn was constantly complaining about one paper or another and Mitchie never seemed to get on top of all the history homework from class.

All too quickly it was Friday and Mitchie, Caitlyn and Mrs. Torres were heading home after a taco dinner at school with heavy backpacks.

"So, is Tyler there yet, Mom?" Mitchie asked.

"Yea, apparently he got to our house this morning. Dad had to close the shop for the day because Lea and James had school."

"Dad and Tyler Steel have been together, alone, all day! This can't be good."

"Relax; he probably went straight to sleep anyway. He did come in from out of the country to see Rachel," Caitlyn suggested.

It sounded like Mrs. Torres could not have been any more wrong about that though. As the girls pulled into the driveway Mitchie heard yelling coming from the back yard.

_Oh snap. What did dad do?_

The girls dropped their backpacks at the front door and ran to the porch. What they found no one could ever imagine.

"Dad! What are you doing?" Mitchie asked.

"Hey Mitchie, we're just playing some catch. You want to play?"

_My dad is playing catch with Tyler Steel. Breathe Mitchie, just breathe._

"Sure," Caitlyn said immediately, extending her arms to catch the ball in Mr. Torres' hand.

Mitchie broke her stare after a minute and joined in the game of catch. She was not very good. Her skills relied on a guitar in her hand or a piano under her fingers, but she seemed to catch every ball with precision as if it were a dance move.

The sun went down and it got very cold outside. Mrs. Torres called everyone inside for hot coco and popcorn before Mitchie and Caitlyn's long night of math equations and history flash cards and Tyler's movie date with Rachel.

"So Tyler, where are you originally from?" Mrs. Torres asked.

"I'm from Michigan. I studied martial arts there and then decided acting was more my thing."

"That's interesting," Mrs. Torres commented.

"So Tyler," Mr. Torres said in his dad voice, "how do you know Rachel?"

"We have some mutual friends and we might also be doing a new romantic comedy together this summer."

"I see. So, have you and Rachel been out before?"

"No… She had Shane and I recently broke up with my girlfriend Ava."

"How old are you Tyler?" Mrs. Torres asked, trying to lighten the mood and show that Mr. Torres was just protective of his daughter's closer friends.

"I'm seventeen," Tyler said with a sigh of relief on his face.

"You and Mitchie are the same age," Mrs. Torres commented.

"Really? Mitchie what are you into?" Tyler added, switching the attention away from himself.

"Well, I-I'm into music and dance," Mitchie stammered.

"Cool. Do you play any instruments?"

"I play guitar and piano."

"She's also an amazing singer," Caitlyn helped.

"Really? You sing too?" Tyler asked, interested.

"Yea, but I'm not as amazing as Caitlyn thinks."

"She's lying, Tyler. She would have won the Final Jam competition if she hadn't been kicked out," Caitlyn pushed.

"Kicked out?" Tyler's eyebrows drew together in confusion.

"It's a long, long story," Mrs. Torres said.

"I see. So you two go to school together? Caitlyn what is your talent?"

"I want to be a music producer and people say I can dance pretty well."

"That's cool; we should jam next time I'm in town. I play a little guitar and I know Rachel would probably be into it."

Tyler checked his watch just as the doorbell rang.

"That's my ride, but I'll be back later," Tyler said, getting up and waving as he headed for the door.

Everyone sat at the kitchen table in silence. This was an experience that no one would ever forget.

_I just talked to Tyler Steel as if he was a normal person with not amazing talent or fame. What is going on in my life? This is so incredible. Who knew one summer catering job could change my life forever. Speaking of change, I should probably go change into some warmer clothing. Gosh it's gotten cold this week._

Later that night after their homework was done for the weekend, Mitchie and Caitlyn sat on the couch to watch Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Caitlyn had never seen it before and was curious what the hubbub was about.

They were halfway through when there was a knock at the front door. Naturally, they ignored it while Connie went to the door instead. They heard it close and thought nothing of it.

"Is that what I think it is?" came a masculine voice from behind the girls.

Both twisted around with a start.

_Oh my gosh, he probably thinks we're geeks now._

"What do you think it is?" Mitchie meekly asked.

"Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, right? This is my favorite movie. I can quote it by heart."

"You like Harry Potter?" Caitlyn asked, surprised.

"Yea, who doesn't?"

"Well I just thought with Twilight that…"

"Yea, yea. I get that a lot. Actually I liked Harry Potter a lot more, but I don't have a British accent so, they didn't even consider me for any role."

Mitchie and Caitlyn nodded.

"Do you want to join us?" Mitchie asked.

Tyler headed over to the couch and sat between the two girls as Mitchie un-paused it.

The rest of the night passed rather quickly with Mitchie and Tyler separating the parts in each scene and quoting the rest of the movie without missing a word. Caitlyn complained lightly with tears of laughter in her eyes every few minutes because of her obsession with British accents before finally giving up.

Around one in the morning the girls said good night to Tyler and headed for Mitchie's room. They decided it was the prefect time to work on Mitchie's song for the Marcy's Day Parade considering all the caffeine and sugar they had consumed.

After two hours of hard work on the song, the girls finally fell asleep sprawled out on Mitchie's bed.

'_Hey you, don't let 'em see you frown, Come on turn it upside down. Don't ever quit, get up, get up. When life, puts you to the test, there's nothing better than your best. Show 'em what you got, you got a lot. Show 'em what you got, get up, get up. Get up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up.'_

Mitchie and Caitlyn woke with a start. The sun was shining through the window as the two girls rolled off the bed and onto the floor.

_What a wild night to tell Sierra about. She's not gonna believe who's staying here. I wonder how she's handling the who Lilac thing. I should probably call Shane to see what's going on with the press. I'll call Sierra too._

Mitchie left Caitlyn in search for her cell phone which she found sitting on the kitchen table with two unchecked text messages.

_Mitchie-_

_I called but when you didn't answer I figured you were busy with school stuff. Just wanted to say that I'm excited for next weekend and I miss you._

_-Shane (11:26pm)_

_Mitchie-_

_Where are you? You know how Shane gets when you don't answer him. He may seem calm in his texts but he's freaking out inside. Call him ASAP._

_-Nate (12:39am)_

* * *

Shane paced back and forth across the hotel room floor.

_This is so boring, what can I do to distract myself. Maybe I should call Mitchie…No; if I call she'll think I'm the obsessive type or that I'm too clingy. Why didn't she answer her phone last night? Maybe I should call Tess to make sure that we have a plan. When did she say she was going home to meet Nick?_

The sun was just beginning to rise and Shane had not slept a wink. He had tossed and turned for three hours but had not fallen asleep. When he had woken Nate with his movement, Nate had told him to go for a run and let him sleep. Shane left for the workout room only to find that a girl's sleep over party had taken over the pool that shared windows with the workout room. Instead of a simulated run on a treadmill at two in the morning, Shane found himself running the hallways of the hotel trying to lose the screaming parade of girls behind him.

After a half an hour, Shane slipped behind a soda machine to catch his breath. His adrenaline pumping, he quietly slipped behind the group returning to the room while chuckling at the beach towel strewn on the ground when he reached the end of one hallway.

Shane looked at the clock, willing it to move faster. He had been passing while Nate slept on for two hours only stopping to check the position of the moon in the sky as the sun finally started to make an appearance.

Shane looked down at his cell phone.

_5:30. Add two hours. Mitchie should be up in an hour. I guess I could call her then. Who was I kidding thinking to call Tess? It's still really early. Maybe I should try to sleep again…_

Shane pulled off his shirt and crawled back into bed. He was finally getting comfortable when the alarm clock went off.

_You know, that alarm clock has perfect timing on my nerves. Well if Nate's taking a shower I still have half an hour before I have to get up._

"Shane," Nate said, hanging his feet over the side of the bed, "Time to get up. We have a rehearsal in an hour."

"What? I thought we had today off," Shane groaned.

"George moved up some of our appearances so we could go to Camp Rock this weekend to _visit your uncle_. Besides it's not like we didn't get back to the hotel at midnight anyway. Didn't you sleep at all?"

"I _tried_. Nothing happened…I closed my eyes and saw Mitchie. You told me to go for a run so I did."

"I told you to go for a run? Out loud?"

"Yea, you didn't know that?"

"Shane, I was sleep talking. My dream was about you doing a relay race with Jason and me. You were the runner while I was the biker and Jason swam. I know, weird dream…"

Shane let out a sarcastic laugh.

"So you mean to tell me, that the Boss is now giving me directions in his sleep and I'm still following them?"

"I guess…sorry."

"It's all good. I got my run in for sure."

Shane explained the night's events while the two readied themselves for their rehearsal on another radio show.

'_Look at you, look at me. There's never any us. Can't you see all we can become? We can shine like the sun, if we believe that two stars are brighter than one. Come on, come on, come on, look at you. Come on, come on, come on, look at me.'_

"Hey Tess."

_Hey Shane. I just wanted to let you know that the plan is set. We're breaking up this weekend in Malibu._

"Cool so what's the set up like?"

_I figure you and I can go to the beach and spend the day surfing and then I'll spot Nick on the beach and fall for him. You get upset and we break up._

"And you've checked this with Nick? He is an actor, but will he like acting like your secret lover?"

_Well, I wouldn't call him that, but yea. I got a walk on role in his show last year as a short lived girlfriend. Since then we've been friends. When I told him about my little plan he asked if I wanted it to be real. Can you believe it Shane? He asked me out on the spot._

"That's great Tess. Well, I'll see you at the radio show. Bye."

_Yea, see you later._

"YES!" Shane shouted happily.

"What?" Nate vocalized curiously.

"Tess and I are breaking up this weekend."

"So you're breaking up with her at Camp Rock?" Nate asked opening the door.

"No. She and I are flying to Malibu for a _couple's weekend_," Shane's brow furrowed.

"What about Mitchie?" Nate asked, stepping into the hallway.

"I'm doing this for Mitchie," Shane answered, following Nate out of the hotel room, but missing Nate's meaning completely.

"So, you're going to Malibu with Tess on the weekend that I arranged specifically to spend with Mitchie and Caitlyn."

"No. That's next weekend. This weekend I break up with Tess and next weekend I spend with Mitchie."

"Dude, it's not Friday anymore. It's Monday and you only have one weekend to be in Malibu with Tess and at Camp Rock with Mitchie. I know you can multitask, but how are you supposed to be in California and Arkansas at the same time?"

"Oh, my gosh…Snap! What am I supposed to do Nate? I'm breaking up with Tess _for_ Mitchie, but if I go to Malibu with Tess then Mitchie will think I'm stiffing her."

* * *

**So... what did you think? I want really hard core feedback because it took me a long time to write this.**


	35. Malibu

**Hey everyone. Sorry this has taken so long. If you have any questions don't hesitate to ask. It's been a busy summer, so I might not get back to you in 24 hours like I usually do, but I promise I will get back to you. Without further adue: Malibu

* * *

**

**LAST TIME**

"No. That's next weekend. This weekend I break up with Tess and next weekend I spend with Mitchie."

"Dude, it's not Friday anymore. It's Monday and you only have one weekend to be in Malibu with Tess and at Camp Rock with Mitchie. I know you can multitask, but how are you supposed to be in California and Arkansas at the same time?"

"Oh, my gosh…Snap! What am I supposed to do Nate? I'm breaking up with Tess _for_ Mitchie, but if I go to Malibu with Tess then Mitchie will think I'm stiffing her."

* * *

**NOW**

'_Sometimes I have good days and it's good to be me, sometimes I get the best of insecurity. And it's quite alright to be the one and only, but today I feel like the one and lonely'_

"Sierra?" Mitchie answered the phone, entering the falling snow as the sun rose above the clouds.

_Thank goodness I got a hold of you Mitchie. It wasn't Lilac! She sent the picture to Katrina because Katrina didn't believe she actually was meeting Shane. Apparently Katrina still has a vendetta against you so she pulled this stunt. I can't believe the nerve of her! And to think it could have been me to do that…Mitchie…I almost sent Katrina a picture of the two of you together too… I could have been the one that is causing all these problems. I am so, so, so sorry._

"Sierra, relax. It wasn't you and I know you would never follow through on something like that. You might think about it, but you would never betray me," Mitchie soothed, watching her feet to avoid falling in the fresh snow, "The important thing is that you solved the mystery and now we can start fixing it. So, how is Lilac feeling about the whole situation?"

_BEEP, BEEP_

_She's so embarrassed that she actually thought about transferring to a different school. Katrina thought she was doing us a favor and told the whole school that we knew Shane Gray. Now I can't even go to class without whispering about me or you or Lilac and the whole situation. There are also the people who just bluntly ask me about it and I just have to ignore them. It's only second period and it's so bad that when I tried to hide in the bathroom, girls actually followed me in to ask about if Jason actually was as nice in person._

"So where are you now?" Mitchie asked, entering Cabin One for Algebra 2.

_BEEP BEEP_

_Oh… just the principle's office… Apparently when you become a distraction to everyone else's learning you get detention. Principle Carter said that if it happens tomorrow I am partially suspended._

"Sierra, I'm so sorry. I can't believe this is happening just because of a stupid music video."

_It's not your fault and I don't want you to take it that way. I was in the music video too so it would have happened eventually. This might actually be a good thing. I was planning on graduating a year early and going to Arkansas State University anyway. This just pushed up the plans._

"No Sierra, this isn't fair to you. Maybe you can transfer, stay with my parents for the rest of high school. Wait… what do you mean partially suspended?"

_Principle Carter said that she would arrange a tutor for me so I could keep up. Mom has been talking about moving so that she could help your mom with the business. She even discussed me being homeschooled next year._

"You can't miss your senior year of high school. What about John? He just moved there and he probably doesn't have many friends and Lilac… What is she going to do without you? Academics are your life; you can't just give up being valedictorian because of some silly little issue with your best friend. Just wait it out a couple days and see what happens. Ok?"

_I guess you're right. I'll call you later._

"Alright; I got to go, class is about to start," Mitchie said, eyeing Mr. Levalo folding and putting down his newspaper.

_Bye Mitchie._

"Bye Sierra."

* * *

_Beep, boop, boop, beep, bup, beep, boop… ring, ring, ring…Hey…_

"Mitchie, glad I caught you before class… I can't make it this weekend… I have to fly to California for something…"

…_this is Mitchie-I'm not here right now; leave a message after the beep…_

Shane pressed end before the call could completely go to the voicemail.

_What am I going to do? I don't want to tell her I can't make it in a text message…I know she's at school, but I thought she had passing periods… Where is she?_

The car stopped outside the 702.3 FM station and a man came to the door to let Shane out. Not a cloud was in sight and the weather could not have been better, but the rain cloud brewing over Shane's head just seemed to grow darker. Nate followed him out with a spring in his step. His mental sky was crystal blue.

A hand reached out for Shane as soon as he entered the building. He took it just like he had gotten used to and pulled it towards the doors to the studio entrance. Tess began to act as she usually did; she would not let go of Shane and held a fake longing in her eyes for him.

The interview went as they usually did, questions about the tour, music, and dating. Nate kept his relationship with Caitlyn private and Shane and Tess acted as though they were a happy couple. Tess even mentioned that she would be taking a long weekend in Malibu to visit friends without Shane. Shane played along hiding his anxious feelings from his facial expressions.

After that interview, George, Shane, Nate, Jason, and Tess all piled into the sleek black car to head to the next venue, a morning show. George provided a revised schedule to the three to allow for their weekend at Camp Rock. He begged the boys to change their mind about traveling during time off, but nothing would deter Nate from getting his way and Jason was convinced that he could go bird watching while visiting the camp. Shane kept his mouth closed. He still had to figure out what to do about that weekend.

_Beep, boop, boop, beep, bup, beep, boop… ring…Hey…_

"Mitchie, I have something to tell you. I know you were looking forward to this weekend, but…"

…_this is Mitchie-I'm not here right now; leave a message after the beep…_

Shane let out a long slow breath as he shoved his phone back into his pocket and headed for the stage. He shot Tess a worried look as he grabbed her hand for what felt like the hundredth time that day and took his seat on Tyrisha's couch.

_Just two more interviews… then you can freak out about Mitchie not calling you back. Two interviews, then you drive Tess to the airport; act like you'll really miss her and go back to the hotel… Tess will call Mitchie when you go on to the stage to play. It's all going to be ok._

"Shane-Shane," Tyrisha called for Shane's attention.

"I'm sorry, what were you saying?"

"Well, someone was off in their own little world. Who were you thinking about?"

Shane thought for a second.

"Um… Tess of course. I'm really going to miss her while she's in California this week. I might just have to go visit her on my day off," Shane elaborated.

"So the rumors of another girl are wrong?"

"Yea that was just a still from our new music video coming out in December. It's about finding someone who completes you. Tess didn't want the part, so I offered it to a student I had this summer."

* * *

"Hey Caitlyn, how was Music Production?"

"Not bad, you'll finish early," Caitlyn commented picking up an orange slice from the buffet table.

"Sweet, so have you heard from Nate today? Tess texted me and said that they're swamped with interviews and shows this week. It's weird… their schedule changed a lot considering the one Tess gave me at the beginning of the school year."

"I think the manager moved some things so they could come this weekend. No word from Nate except that he can't wait to see me. Why?"

"Shane has tried to call me twice, but I've been in classes all morning and I missed his call when Sierra called. I hope everything is ok. Oh, and speaking of Sierra, I need to call Nate about publicist stuff. Sierra found out how the photo leaked and might get suspended because of it."

"What?" Caitlyn spit.

"Yea, apparently her knowing Connect 3 is too much of a distraction to the student body that she got pulled out of class. They're even considering getting her a tutor so she can stay home but stay on track with school until the whole thing dies down."

Sliding into the seat next to Katie, Mitchie plopped her tray onto the table and began to stare at her food.

_Who could be hungry at a time like this? Sierra might get kicked out, Shane keeps calling like there's some sort of emergency and I'm so swamped with projects all due in two Fridays that I won't even have time to spend with the guys while they are in town._

Mitchie jumped as Amy tapped her on the shoulder, "You gonna eat that?" Amy asked, pointing to Mitchie's bag of chips.

She shook her head letting Amy take the bag and stood up.

"I'm going back to the cabin for awhile. I have to work on my English paper. I'll see you guys later."

Mitchie walked towards the door, grabbing her winter jacket from its peg by the blazing fire. She stared at her phone as she trudged out into the, now, four inches of snow.

_Two missed calls. Why isn't he leaving messages? I can't even call him back because he's doing a show right now! I hate this…Sierra's probably home now…She did say that she had a detention and I'm pretty sure with what was going on her mom pulled her out of school._

_Ring, ring, ring…Hello?_

"Hey Sierra it's me. How are you?"

_Ok I guess. Principle Carter decided on what to do with me. She told my teachers to give me all my homework until Thanksgiving. I'll go back after that. You're still coming here for Thanksgiving right?_

"Oh, shoot. I totally forgot about our plans…"

_So you're not coming?_

"I can't… my parents are taking me to New York and…"

_Enough said. You have to go. That's awesome. You HAVE to go to the parade. Make sure to take a lot of pictures for me and wave if you're by a camera. I'll be watching like always._

"Haha, ok Sierra. I promise, just make sure you watch the whole parade from beginning to end. Ok?"

_I promise. I always do. I got to go, homework._

"Yea, I have homework too. The guys are supposed to be in town this weekend and I don't think I'll even get to see anything but the inside of my room because of how many projects the teachers have going. I'll call you later."

_Ok bye._

"Bye," Mitchie said into the phone, reaching her cabin.

She dropped her phone haphazardly on her bed as she entered the room and dragged herself to her desk.

_If I can just get my math homework done now, then I can focus on my English paper, my Physic project and my dance solo after Music Production and dinner. Thank goodness Brown only wants me to work on my parade song. I don't know what I would do if I had a song due before Thanksgiving too. Actually… that wouldn't be such a bad idea. Ok, x plus seven, squared…_

"_I love you Mitchie. I could never see myself with anyone else," Shane kissed Mitchie sweetly._

_The sun reflected off the pure white snow. Shane brought Mitchie into a hug, his muscular arms around her. Her head fit perfectly in the crook of his neck while he hummed softly to her._

"_Oh Shane," Mitchie breathed, "I love you too."_

'_You need that boy like a bowling ball dropped on your head, Which means not at all, You have too much to give, to live to waste your time on him'_

"_Shane, why do you sound like Caitlyn's ringtone?"_

Mitchie peered up to find that Shane had disappeared. She was no longer in her and Shane's special spot by the lake, but sitting at her desk with only two math problems left to go. She turned in her chair to see her phone lighting up in the darkness of the cabin. Jumping to her feet, Mitchie rushed to the phone to hear the ringtone stop and the light go out.

The beep that followed told her that Caitlyn had left a message for her.

'_Hey Mitchie. Um… I just wanted to make sure you were ok. I mean, you missed the last two classes and now the teachers are sending us all to the mess hall for the rest of classes because the snowstorm is so bad that they don't want us outside unless we are going to our cabins. If you get this, call your mom. She's taking attendance in the mess hall and she said to call everyone missing and tell them to stay put. I hope you're ok. I'll see you when the snow stops. Bye'_

_Oh snap! I'm stuck in here alone until the snow stops…What am I going to do? What about classes? I can catch up on Rachel's stuff and Music Production shouldn't be that bad, but what about History? If I'm one day behind on that, there is no way I will have time for Shane, Nate and Jason this weekend…_

After calling to confirm her safety, Mitchie e-mailed her afternoon teachers and asked for the homework. Without the distraction of Abby, Caitlyn and Alicia, Mitchie was able to finish her rough draft on her research paper for English, choreograph her dance project, finish her math homework and complete everything on her physics project. She was just starting on the History assignment that Mr. Demicon had sent to her when her phone rang.

'_Everything is different, why do things change? I'm still standing here, but you've walked away. Everything is nothing now that I see, everything we are is everything we're gonna be."_

"Hey" Mitchie answered.

There was a silence for a couple seconds.

"Shane, are you there?"

_Mitchie, how are you? I've called thirteen times and I texted you this weekend but you didn't call back. Did I do something wrong?_

"Oops; I guess I missed your calls, sorry. This weekend was really hectic and my cell service is probably being interfered by the storm now."

_Storm? What storm are you talking about?_

"I'm in the middle of a snow storm right now. In fact, if it wasn't for the fact that I fell asleep doing homework during my lunch period, I would be in the mess hall taking make-shift classes right now."

Shane chucked.

_You actually fell asleep during lunch? What could you be so stressed about that you would skip lunch? It's the best meal of the day!_

"Well, you had already called me twice by that point and I was worried about why you were calling so much without leaving messages. Then there is the fact that Sierra might be getting kicked out of school, not to mention the mountain of homework that I have this week. All the teachers are piling on the homework so that we don't have to take it on break with us.

"I have a paper, a dance, and a song to perfect for next Friday. Not to mention the stress of having the Marcy's Day Parade in two weeks. Sierra called this morning too to tell me that Katrina, my old rival, is trying to get back at me for something I did _six years ago_ by selling pictures of you and me together, so now I know that it wasn't Lilac but I have a bigger problem because now Katrina has made going to school impossible for Sierra."

_Mitchie, you need to calm down and breathe. I get it; you've had a busy morning and a stressful afternoon. Let's talk about something else, get your mind on something not so stressful. How was your weekend?_

"It was fun… Rachel's new boyfriend stayed at my house this weekend so we watched movies and played catch. Nothing high stress. Did you know that Tyler Steel was a Harry Potter fan?"

_Actually I did. We ended up sitting next to each other at a premiere in New York a couple years ago. So, that's Rachel's new arm candy huh? Well, good for her. She has finally moved on._

Mitchie smiled at his excitement.

"Tyler seems like a great guy too. They're almost perfect for each other."

_Almost? What's wrong with it?_

"Well, the age difference…"

_You're really going to say that? Mitchie, you and I are two years apart and they are only three years apart. What's the big deal?_

"I just think that Tyler might not be mature enough for Rachel in the end."

_I see your point, but Rachel was a little immature for her age too._

"Maybe you're right. Anyway, I know you didn't call just to check up on me. What's on your mind?"

_Tess came up with a good plan for our break up and we're going to put it into action really soon._

"That's great; maybe we'll have it behind us by Thanksgiving."

_We will. The plan is that Tess is going to cheat on me with Nick James this weekend. I'm going to fake an emotional break up with her and then we're home free._

"That sounds amazing," Mitchie commented, "wait… did you say this weekend?"

_That's why I've been trying to call you…Mitchie, I'm going to try really hard to get out there Saturday night, but I might not make it to visit you this weekend…_

"Oh," Mitchie whispered after a couple seconds of silence, "ok. Yea, sure, no problem; like I said, I have homework anyway."

_Mitchie, don't make this harder that it has to be. I want to be there with you, but I can't be there the way I want to if I have this Tess thing hanging over my head._

"I told you, I get it Shane," Mitchie defended.

_I just wanted to make sure. If I had realized it was the same day I wouldn't have agreed to go to Malibu with her._

"Malibu! She's really playing it up! Are you sure Nick will even show up?"

_Mitchie, don't you think you're being a little dramatic?_

"Well, she does have a history."

_This is why I was scared to tell you. I knew you were going to freak out._

"I am not freaking out," Mitchie said bringing her voice back to a normal volume, "I am simply explaining my discomfort with you and Tess going to Malibu together."

_We aren't going together. I just dropped her off at the airport. She's going up now to get buzz going about her being seen with Nick. Oh, by the way she has a date with him tonight. A real date, so don't worry about me. It's not like I'm going to kiss her or anything._

"Shane," Mitchie groaned.

_Sorry bad choice of illustrations._

"I got to go. Apparently I have to read an entire chapter in my history book. Call me when you land in Malibu."

Mitchie hung up without waiting for a response.

Caitlyn, Abigail and Alicia came in several hours later with a plate of food for Mitchie. By then Mitchie had finished her History homework and somehow managed to get her English paper's second revision to her teacher.

For the rest of the week Mitchie threw herself into her school work. Caitlyn and Abigail could barely get two words out of her and never saw her at meals. Connie couldn't even stop Mitchie from doing homework long enough to eat and hold a normal conversation with her. Sierra could only get Mitchie to talk by texts and Shane couldn't even get Mitchie to respond to her through Nate. She ignored any Connect 3 contacts completely.

When Mitchie could not distract herself with schoolwork or homework, she made herself useful, helping Ms. Catsing shovel snow off the path ways manually. Mitchie found that if she helped Ms. Catsing out, Ms. Catsing was willing to help her with her choreography for her solo. Alicia only could get Mitchie to talk to her when she needed help with her guitar or homework for classes. Anytime the weekend came up in conversation, Mitchie shut down or would become so frustrated with Alicia that she would stop helping entirely.

The week could not go fast enough for Mitchie, but sure enough Friday came and Mitchie just couldn't wait to hide in her room alone. With everyone trying to comfort her all week, she really just needed her space to think, write, and maybe cry a little.

What Mitchie wasn't expecting was Nate to show up in her last period class with Jason. Nate walked strait up to Ms. Spray and asked if Mitchie could leave. Mitchie had been done with her work and had been doing extra credit when the two had invaded the cabin. Naturally, Ms. Spray allowed Mitchie to go, seeing the improvement in her work that week.

Mitchie unwillingly followed Nate and Jason out of the classroom and in the direction of her cabin. The boys acquired a brisk pace as they past through the camp and directly to Mitchie's cabin door.

Nate opened the door for Mitchie as Jason waited at the door with him.

"Well, those gentleman classes really did pay off, didn't they?"

Nate remained silent as Jason simply looked confused. Mitchie, having every intention of ignoring the whole Shane situation tried to spark a conversation about the tour.

"So how was the Tyrisha show? Any chance you got me an autograph?"

"Actually I did," Jason spoke up, "It's in my bags. I got you an 'I Love NYC t-shirt too."

"Jason! That's not why we pulled Mitchie out of class early! Keep your focus!" Nate punched out frustrated.

"Sorry Nate; I'm just so happy to see Mitchie, I couldn't help myself."

Nate rolled his eyes and pulled Mitchie over to her desk chair. She sat down with hesitation as to what Nate was about to say.

"Mitchie, I know you're mad at Shane, but you have to talk about it. You won't talk to Caitlyn or Alicia and you ignored all our calls this week. Now you have to talk."

"Technically we could sit here in silence and not talk. I'm perfectly ok with that," Mitchie tried.

"Oh, no, that's not going to happen. Listen Mitchie, Shane wouldn't be going to California if it weren't for you. He wants to end it with Tess so that you two can finally have a real relationship without all this stupid jealousy between it."

"First of all, who said I was jealous? Second of all, couldn't he have warned me earlier? I mean… come on, we've been on the phone multiple times since I found out you guys were coming to visit. Thirdly, why does he have to be there to watch Tess cheat on him? If the press sees Tess with Nick then what's the point of Shane being there? Fourth of all, I know what he's doing is not that big of a deal, but next week is going to be really stressful and we really won't have much time together while we're in New York because of family stuff and the parade."

"So that's what this is really about," Nate pondered allowed, "You want special time with Shane just like I wanted special time with Caitlyn this weekend. I thought that might have something to do with this. Well, I guess there's only one thing to do then."

Jason nodded, for once knowing some of what Nate was talking about. Nate pulled Mitchie to her feet and led the way to the door. Outside the cabin sat a pink stretch limo.

Mitchie threw Jason a confused glance. Jason just smiled in response as Nate led the way to the car. Jason opened the door and summoned Mitchie into the back seat. As soon as she was in, Jason followed, taking a seat next to her and closing the door. The car started to move almost directly.

"Jason! What's going on? Why are we moving? What's with the pink limo? We don't have time for an intervention. I have homework to do!"

"I know; that's why I grabbed your backpack and computer on the way out and your guitar is in the trunk."

"Jason, you can't kidnap me! What about my mom and Caitlyn? We're supposed to make dinner and I have to get a lot done this weekend. My dad wanted to meet you guys before we left for New York."

"I met your dad and got permission to kidnap you. Everything is going to be perfect. As for where you're going, I'm not even allowed to know. The driver knows and the driver will take us directly to where we need to go. The pink limo was Nate's idea; he thought you would get a kick out of it."

"You met my dad? He's ok with you kidnapping me? What did you pack my clothes too?"

"No, that would be your mom. We got here around lunch time and Nate told her the plan while you were eating lunch and she was setting up the dishwasher; you know how loud that thing is. When you went to class, she went back to your house and packed you up. She also told me to give you this," Jason said, pulling out a credit card.

"What? Why do I need a credit card?"

"You buy stuff with it so I suppose that she must have thought you would want to buy something while you were gone."

"Gone? So we aren't going to be back until Sunday night?"

"I don't know. I told you, I don't know anything, and I'm just supposed to be your companion. Oh, we have to stop by Caitlyn's last class before we leave."

Just as he spoke, the car pulled to a stop outside Caitlyn's math class. Caitlyn ran out and threw a wig through the window along with a slew of make up simply smiling at Mitchie and Jason before running back inside and out of the falling snow.

Mitchie grabbed the gold mane with a questioning look, but proceeded to put it on. Jason stowed the make-up in Mitchie's backpack for a non-moving time and handed her a baggy sweatshirt.

_Mmm…_Mitchie thought as she slid it over her head, _it smells just like Shane. I should probably call him. Did I tell him to call me? I don't remember…_

'_Everything is different, why do things change? I'm still standing here, but you've walked away. Everything is nothing now that I see, everything we are is everything we're gonna be.'_

Jason, closer to it, took Mitchie's phone as she reached for it from the side pocket of her backpack. She tried to take it from him, but he put an arm up to block her opening and closing hands.

"Hello?" Jason answered, "Shane! Hey buddy, how are you? No, Nate said I wasn't allowed to let you. I promised him that I wouldn't. Yea I can do that. Ok. Bye."

"Jason! Why can't I talk to Shane?"

"Oh, _now_ you want to talk to him? All week you have been avoiding _the three_ of us and _now_ you want to talk to Shane?"

"Yes. Can I _please_ have my cell phone now?"

"Sorry, I am under strict instructions to keep it away from you. Nothing you do will make me give it back to you until I get the all clear from Nate."

"But Jason, Shane is going to be even more upset than I know he is with me if I don't call him back. I told him to call me today and now you're making it so I can't talk to him?"

"I'm sorry Mitchie…Nate said so, but I can tell you that Shane says hi and he's sorry."

Mitchie leaned back onto the seat in a huff.

* * *

Shane looked down at his phone. Friday had been his only hope of making things right with Mitchie. He had respected her will to be left alone by only trying to talk to her through Nate and keeping his calls to her to twice a day with one text message to tell her he still cared about her. Now that Friday had come, Nate had shut down any possibility of talking to Mitchie.

Nate knew Jason's one weak spot. Once Jason made a promise he always followed through to the end. Shane knew about this weak spot too and used it to the best of his ability when he could. The biggest problem always came when Nate was trying to keep something from Shane that Jason needed to know about.

"_I promised him that I wouldn't"_

Who would have known that two stupid little words could mean so much to a rock star was beyond Shane's wildest dreams, but he supposed that is what made Jason such a true and valued person.

Shane put his phone back in his pocket as he rose from the cushioned seat and made his way out of the plane. There at the terminal stood Tess with open arms acting slightly paranoid at the cameras that were constantly flashing all around her.

"Tess," Shane said with a smile reaching her, "How's your week going?"

"Oh Shane…you're so…thoughtful," Tess said back, "Come on let's get your bags and we can talk about it in a more… private setting. How was your flight?"

"Pretty short," Shane answered, keeping the conversation light and casual.

Shane grabbed Tess's hand for what he hoped would be one of the last times and waded through the crowd of paparazzi towards the baggage claim. When they had finally reached it, Shane was over taken by fanatics who had seen him walking through the terminals. After a half an hour of signing autographs and taking pictures, Shane and Tess made their way out into the "fresh" air of California.

"Shane, what are the rumors about you and Torres?"

"Tess, how do you feel about Shane being in the arms of another woman?"

"Shane, where is your band?"

"Tess, how long are you staying in California this time?"

"Tess, what's the deal with you and Nick?"

Shane and Tess ignored each question as they made their way to Tess's pink convertible. A kind member of the paparazzi helped open the trunk, hoping for a little jackpot picture of their own and soon Tess and Shane had hit the open road.

"So, now that we can talk, have you heard from Mitchie at all?" Tess questioned.

"I tried to call her, but Jason answered the phone and wouldn't let me speak to her. Have you talked to Nick about the betrayal?"

"Yea, it's set for tonight. You and I'll have dinner and then you'll drop me off at my hotel room with paparazzi watching. Then you'll leave and go back to your room as if you need to go grab something. While you're gone, Nick will come up and knock on the door and I'll let him in. Two minutes later we'll walk out into the hall in a lip lock at which time you will walk back to my room with a beach towel like we were going swimming. Throw the beach towel on the ground, get red in the face and walk slowly back to your room."

"Wow. That's almost perfect. That means that I could get to Mitchie before breakfast tomorrow."

Tess nodded her head as she pulled into a hotel driveway and parked the car.

* * *

"Nate, where's Mitchie, Shane and Jason? I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what's going on," Caitlyn stated, with a childish stomp.

"Come on Caitlyn, if I tell you where Mitchie's going you will tell her and as for Shane, Mitchie really didn't tell you?"

"No, Mitchie has been irresponsive all week. She wouldn't talk to anyone. Mrs. Torres even came to me to beg me to get her to talk, but any time I tried to get her to talk; she would leave or put her headphones in. She won't say a thing to anyone. What's really going on Nate? You tell me to give her the stupid Hannah Montana disguise and then leave me hanging. That's not fair. I'm worried about her."

Nate took a deep breath and gave Caitlyn a hug as the tears started rolling down her face.

"Shane isn't coming this weekend… He's in Malibu with Tess-"

"WHAT! No, this can't be happening. This can't be really after all Mitchie has been through with Shane."

"Relax," Nate comforted, putting his hands on her shoulders, "He went to break up with Tess. It's part of the plan, but Mitchie was really upset that Shane wasn't coming. I guess she just shut down."

"And you couldn't tell me this all over the phone when I was freaking out earlier this week?"

"Well, no…I didn't really know how bad the situation was until I saw Mrs. Torres today. I came up with a plan to fix all of this, but I can't tell you or Shane or Mitchie or Jason."

"You expect this plan to work then?" Caitlyn asked, standing up and beginning to pack for Mitchie's house.

"Yes, I do. Mitchie and Jason are taking a trip together this weekend, Shane and Tess are in Malibu, which leaves you and me together for the whole weekend without distractions," Nate explained, wrapping his arms around Caitlyn's middle.

Caitlyn smirked as she zipped up her suitcase and turned to face Nate.

"I love your brilliant plans," she said, gently laying a kiss on his cheek.

* * *

"Excuse me Jason, we have arrived," the driver said over the intercom.

"Thank you," Jason said back, as the car stopped and he opened his door.

After being helped out of the car, Mitchie took her first look at her surroundings. She had spent the entire car ride trying to get answers out of Jason while playing with her chipping nail polish. Jason had forced her to drink something because she looked like a ghost, but she had only finished half a water bottle.

Now, as the car drove away leaving Jason, Mitchie and their stuff behind, Mitchie found herself standing on tarmac next to what looked like a private plane. Jason's wide eyes told her that he truly did not have any clue where Nate was sending them.

Jason grabbed his and Mitchie's bags and passed them to an airport employee before guiding Mitchie to the stairs and onto the plane.

At the entrance the flight attendant handed Mitchie a DVD and a note. She took it saying a quick "thanks" before taking a seat in one of the lounge chairs that scattered the plane. Mitchie then opened the note to find instructions in Nate's untidy cursive.

_Mitchie-_

_I'm going to guess that you are freaking out about now. You probably have figured out where you're going but watch the video before fighting Jason to get off the plane. Just so you know Jason really doesn't know anything about what's going on, he's just acting as a good friend to get you through this. Caitlyn is even more in the dark than Jason so don't try to weasel information out of her. I have set up all the arrangements. There will be another pink limo waiting at the gate when you land and it will take you to the place you're staying. Don't worry; the people will be very good to you when you get there. I found this tape in my suitcase when I was packing up to leave yesterday. It was addressed to you so I figured you should see it. I swear Mitchie I don't know what's in it and no one has seen it…that I know of._

_Enjoy your flight,_

_Nate_

_P.S. Everything this weekend is on me. The place you're staying has a credit card for you to use._

Mitchie looked over at Jason as he took his seat with a similar letter in his hand. She pulled her laptop out of her backpack and inserted the DVD into the disk drive.

At first all Mitchie saw what appeared to be a large bed in the moon light that must have come from a window source somewhere else within the room. Then she saw a dark figure sit down on the bed and flip on the light on what Mitchie assumed was a nightstand to the side of the bed.

Shane's figure became clear as well as the burgundy sheets of the unmade bed he was sitting on.

"_Hey Mitchie," Shane whispered, "I know you're mad, but please hear me out before you stop the DVD… I'm trying really hard to be what you want me to be. You weren't ready for a relationship, but with Rachel on my tail you and I decided that this Tess thing was the right thing to do. Now, with the picture I'm trying to fix this again._

"_I never wanted this to hurt you. That would never be my plan. I-I think I might be in love with you."_

Mitchie paused the DVD.

_Did he actually just say what I thought he did?_

She rewound the DVD to the beginning again and listened through again before letting it move on with butterflies going crazy in her stomach.

_He loves me; he just said he might be in love with me. What am I supposed to say back to that? Do I love him too? Is that why my stomach gets all queasy when I see his face on a billboard or in a poster?_

"_Mitchie, my mind is always on you and every time I see a picture of you or we see the edited music video I get all shaky. You haunt my dreams or you make it impossible to sleep._

"_The night before I told you I couldn't come visit this weekend…I didn't sleep at all. I was so nervous about your reaction that I tossed and turned all night. I thought Nate was annoyed with me so I-I kinda went for a run at three in the morning. I still couldn't sleep when I got back to the room at all…I probably handled the whole situation poorly when I told you I couldn't make it. I didn't know what to do… I can't wait to see you when I get in on Sunday. Yes, I still plan to get in before the weekend is over so that we can spend some time together._

"_This Tess thing was to make our, your and my, lives better. I would never go to Malibu with Tess for a serious romantic weekend, especially after spending this much time with her on tour. Sure, she's become a tolerable girl and we've become friends, but she's not you and you're what I want. I know I don't deserve a girl like you after the bad image I've been holding onto the last couple years and how many times I've seemed to mess up. I don't know how I got you either and the last thing I want to do is upset you or worse… lose you. _

"_You wanted Tess and I to get along after the whole incident, but I thought after something like that you would already know how much I really care about you. I almost flew out to you that day. Do you remember that, Mitchie? I had bought a ticket and everything. I didn't even care that I had a coach ticket to Arkansas. The Shane Gray from before you would have gone mental if he had to ride coach._

"_I have considered coming out multiple times tonight just to spend tomorrow with you, but I wanted to respect your wishes to keep the fans and the band first just like you are keeping school first. I've packed and unpacked my suitcase three times in the last two hours._

"_I'm exhausted from waiting for you to answer my calls or call me or even send me a chain letter by e-mail. Wow…that sounded a lot cooler before I said it. Mitchie, I've never been like this EVER before. You do something to me that only you can do. I'm pretty confident when I'm on stage, but every time I try to call you I get butterflies in my stomach. I've played that Teentube video so many times I have it memorized because it was the only way I could see you. You're MyFace is my only source of information and you haven't used it once this week. I know that sounds really stalkerish, but I'm freaking in love with you."_

Tears started to fall both on the screen from Shane's eyes and also began trickling down Mitchie's cheeks.

"_There, I admit it. I love you Mitchie Torres. I love your contagious smile, the chocolate pools in your eyes, your voice that plagued me only a couple months ago and radiate anytime I listen to music in the car, your infectious laugh, your readability, your understanding when I have no excuse, your long straitened hair that smells like roses, and so many more qualities. Mitchie Torres, you have made an indestructible superstar into a blubbering weakling."_

The screen went black. That was it. That was all he said.

"Jason," Mitchie cried out in a watery voice, "I need to talk to Shane. I know Nate said no, but I really _need_ to talk to Shane."

Jason looked up from his letter. His face showed concern. Tears falling down his own face, Jason leapt from his chair and came to Mitchie's side holding her tightly in a bear hug. He did his best to dry her tears, but they continued to run down her face.

What most people did not know about Jason was that he was a contagious crier. This meant that when people he cared about began to cry he would join in and cry with them. When he was in elementary school people used to call him a cry baby, but he had come to terms with the situation and found it actually a nice quality with the ladies (not that he was too concerned about catching girl's attention).

Mitchie's tears slowed and her breathing pattern returned to normal as she drifted off into an uneasy sleep.

The next thing Mitchie knew, she was being gently shaken awake by Jason.

"Mitchie, we're here. It's time to get up."

Mitchie's eyes flittered open to reveal the setting sun coming through the plane windows. Jason offered her a hand and helped her up out of the chair before escorting her out of the plane and into the next pink limo.

_Who knew that there were so many pink limos in the world, let alone the country? We are still in the United States, right?_

"Jason, where are we?" Mitchie questioned, hoping that Jason would at least know this knowledge.

"This time I can't tell you. I know, and you'll know soon, but Nate told me to let you figure it out on your own."

Mitchie sighed loudly as the limo began to move.

Only minutes later the limo stopped in front of what looked like a very normal house and the driver opened the door.

"Ms. Torres," the driver addressed her.

"Thank you," Mitchie said, stepping out of the car.

A short, curly, brunette girl exited the house to greet the car.

"Jason!"

"Hey Sarah! How's my little buddy doin'?"

The girl who's name was Sarah, pushed Jason slightly before hugging him. She then left his side to give Mitchie a hug.

"Mitchie! I've heard so much about you. It's so great to finally meet you! I'm Sarah," the girl introduced herself while continuing to hug Mitchie.

Two adults followed Sarah out of the house both with equally as curly hair. They greeted Jason and Mitchie similarly before helping them with bags.

Danni, Sarah's mother, helped Mitchie carry her suitcase up to one of the many guest rooms in the large house.

"So, Danni, I know Jason through camp. How do you know Jason?"

"Oh, how silly of me. Of course Nate didn't tell you about us. I'm Nate's mother. Welcome to the family Malibu beach house."

* * *

**So... what do you think? I really want to know so don't deprive me! Thanks for sticking with me even thought I'm not a weekly update! Lacey**


	36. I Hope I Never See You Again

**Ok so i finally got time to update! I had writers block for about a week too. I should probably apologize for my lack of updating. I haven't really been in town or near a computer a lot this summer. Anyways without further adu...****

* * *

LAST TIME**

Danni, Sarah's mother, helped Mitchie carry her suitcase up to one of the many guest rooms in the large house.

"So, Danni, I know Jason through camp. How do you know Jason?"

"Oh, how silly of me. Of course Nate didn't tell you about us. I'm Nate's mother. Welcome to the family Malibu beach house."

* * *

**NOW**

"I'll be back soon babe," Shane said, leaving Tess's room and heading for his own.

_Phase one complete. One more hour and I'll be on my way to the airport…if I can get a flight. Nate and Jason have the jet so…_

The lock clicked as Shane opened the door to his own room, paparazzi following to the door frame. Once safely inside, Shane quickly changed into his swimsuit and grabbed a towel to take with him to Tess's room.

_Maybe I should try Mitchie again…No… then I'll be late to Tess's room and totally screw up the timing…_

Shane regretfully put his phone down on the night stand and headed for the door. There was no way he would screw this up. When he opened it a fist hit him in the head.

"Ow! Jason? What are you doing here? I thought you were with Nate. Never mind, we'll talk later. You can stay here but I got to go," Shane said slightly confused and annoyed.

"But I have a surprise for you," Jason responded sadly.

"I'll see it when I get back. Or better yet I'll swing by tonight. Where are you staying?"

"I'm at Nate's parent's beach house."

"Great I'll be there in an hour."

_What the heck is Jason doing here? He's slowing me down. I just want to get this over with!_

Shane shuffled passed Jason and into the hallway passing paparazzi on his way to Tess's room. She must have been running behind schedule herself as she and Nick were not outside the door together making a scene. Shane decided to switch the plan slightly and knocked on the door.

When the door opened, Shane fell to pieces. There in the door frame was the one and only Nick James. It was the only way possible for the paparazzi to fall for it.

"Tess what is Nick James doing in your room?" Shane called out at the top of his voice.

"Shane! It's not what it looks like. I left a book at his house last night. He was just returning it," Tess played along.

"Well then, you were at his house last night? What were you doing at his house?"

"Shane why don't you come inside and this can be a little more private," Tess faked a nervous smile at the paparazzi.

"No! I want to do this right here, right now. Tess, what is Nick James doing in my girlfriend's hotel room? Why was my girlfriend at Nick James' house last night for that matter?"

"We're friends Shane, friends hang out together," Tess cried out.

"No, I don't believe you! He's not interested in being your friend and if you look at him like that one more time we're over."

"Look Shane," Tess soothed, bringing her voice down to a little above a whisper and taking his hand, "You're right. I do like him. That's not why he's here, but maybe we should break up. I am interested with him and it wouldn't be fair to you if I stayed with you and didn't love you anymore."

"So this is really it?" Shane said allowing himself to picture Mitchie saying those words to get himself to cry, "You've moved on? We're really done?"

"Yes Shane, but I hope we can still be friends."

"We'll see about that. I-I gotta go…Have a nice life."

Shane turned around and ran to his room, quickly putting himself back together. He fumbled with his key several times before getting through the door and running for his cell phone.

_Beep, boop, boop, beep, bup, beep, boop… ring, ring, ring…Hey this is Mitchie-I'm not here right now; leave a message after the beep…_

"Mitchie, I know Jason had your phone but I needed you to know…It's over. Tess and I are no more. I don't know if you actually got my DVD or if you listened to it, but I love you and I'm so excited to finally have the chance to be with you. Please, please call me back as soon as you get this message. I miss you so much. I have to go visit Jason really quick but then I'm getting on a plane and coming straight to you. I love you, bye."

* * *

"Don't worry Mrs. Torres, we'll be home by ten," Nate said, pulling Caitlyn towards the door.

"And when can I find out where my daughter is?" Connie asked, crossing her arms and leaning against the very exit Nate had planned on using.

Nate sighed. He had been hounded about Mitchie since the moment he had entered the Torres household.

"I guess I can tell you now. Mitchie doesn't have a cell phone anyway."

"Where's her cell phone?"

"Jason has it for safe keeping. Don't worry she'll get it back in a half an hour. Everything will be clear then and she'll be a happy, talkative person. My sister took her shopping when she got there so that Jason could go get Shane.

"She's staying with my parents at their beach house in Malibu. I thought that she would be happier there than here while Shane's busy. Tonight, both Shane and Mitchie are being surprised with each other. I promise she is in safe and capable hands. She will get all her homework done too! Shane has some press he has to do tomorrow after the break-up so she'll have time for it. Jason and Shane will make sure she gets on the right plane back here at the end of the weekend. Do you have any questions?"

Connie stepped away from the door.

"Have fun you two and tell Jason to tell Mitchie to call me when she has a chance."

Nate nodded and waved as he dragged Caitlyn out of the house. He helped her into the limo before getting in on his side.

"Finally time alone with the most beautiful girl in Arkansas."

"Oh, come on Nate. You know flattery isn't my style and that cheesy stuff really doesn't suit you either."

Nate laughed as the car began to move away from the Torres' house.

* * *

_One new message_

Mitchie read off her cell phone when she arrived back at Nate's parent's house. She had spent a very productive afternoon shopping with Sarah and now just wanted to go to sleep.

_Maybe I can ignore this for now. Sleep sounds really good right now. A nap before Ken's burgers might be good. I thought I spotted a hammock on the deck._

Mitchie made her way up to the guest room heavy laden with bags. She dropped them in the corner of the room and quickly changed out of her winter clothing and into a sundress Nate had bought her, or at least he had paid for it. She looked around the room again before her eyes landed on her book bag.

_Ugg…You have got to be kidding me…I guess I'm not taking a nap, but that hammock could still work out._

With that Mitchie picked up her computer and backpack and headed for the backyard deck forgetting her discarded cell phone on the floor next to the numerous bags of new clothing.

_What should I do first? Math? Nah, I can do that on the plane home. Ok, maybe I can work on the English paper._

Mitchie situated herself in the hammock and pulled out her research note cards and her laptop. The only problem with this was that she was facing the Malibu beach. The sight of the sun setting on the ocean was breath taking and Mitchie found herself struggling to pay any attention to what she was doing.

* * *

Shane pulled up in front of Ken and Danni's house to find it in unusual circumstances. The light was on in the guest room, but no other lights were on at all.

_So Jason's the only one here? No, that can't be right…Jason always stays in Nate's room with me and Nate. He even has his own bed. Besides, Jason would never stay here without some one else. He's too afraid of being alone. Maybe they're redecorating it or something. But why would they leave the light on? And why would Jason tell me to come here just to ditch me? He's way too loyal for that._

Shane jumped out of the taxi and headed for the door as it sped away. Two knocks on the door and there was no answer. Shane tried again with the doorbell but still received no answer.

_Where did Nate say the spare key was again? Oh yea, under the welcome mat._

"Shane? What are you doing?" a voice from behind the now crouching Shane asked.

"Oh, um, Sarah, I didn't see you there. I was just trying to-"

"Trying to sneak into my house undetected. Well, that's not about to happen. How did the break up go?"

"It went pretty well…wait…how do you know about that?"

"Come in and we can talk. No one's home; dad burned dinner and everyone ended up going for Chinese take-out. I opted out and went to Lucy's for dinner."

Shane followed Sarah into the house and up the stairs to her room shutting the door behind her.

Sarah situated herself on the bed while Shane took the floor. This was a typical routine for the two of them. Shane saw Sarah as the little sister his parents had never given him. She gracefully accepted the role of little sister from both Shane and Jason. There was no way she would ever be able to date if her brother and his band mates had anything to do with it.

"So, how do you know about me and Tess?"

"Well, that's on the news, but if you're really asking about the fake dating thing I got that out of Nate when he told me Jason was coming to visit."

"Ok, so why _is_ Jason here? I thought he was going to Camp Rock for the weekend."

"He's already been there. He dropped Nate off and left souvenirs for Mitchie and Alicia. Jason said that Mitchie really misses you. I didn't think she was such an easy crier."

"She isn't normal-wait a minute…how do you know Mitchie was crying?"

"Umm…Jason told me?"

"Why does it sound like your asking a question more than answering one? Sarah, what do you know that I don't?"

At that moment there was the sound of a door opening and closing downstairs. Then the sound of feet on the stairs and finally a head poked into the room.

"Shane! You're finally here! Hey buddy, how are you? This was not where I was expecting to find you, but you are my adopted son so I'll go with it."

"Hey Papa Ken," Shane said, getting up and giving Nate's dad a hug.

"So are you staying? You are welcome to stay if you need to. I know you're at a hotel tonight, but I can get you out of that contract easily."

Ken was definitely related to Nate. He had a way to get around paparazzi and slither out of things he didn't want to do after already promising to do them. The business skills Nate had definitely came through his father.

"Sure, if it's not too much trouble, I'll go over there now and grab my stuff."

"I would offer you a ride, but Jason borrowed the car. He went to the movies; even missed out on dinner…did Sarah tell you about that?" Ken asked hesitantly.

"It happens to the best of us," Shane said, patting Ken on the shoulder and heading out the door.

_So, Sarah knows Mitchie's crying habits, easily explained by over hearing her on a phone or something. Jason missed dinner to go see a movie with…who did he go with?_

Shane passed the guest room and noticed the light was still on. Not thinking twice about it, he turned it off and left the house to grab his stuff from the hotel.

* * *

"Jason, I don't want to see the new Tyler Steel movie. I've seen Nightfall already. Can't we just go back to Nate's and get my homework done?"

"What's the fun in that?" Jason asked seriously.

"The fun in that is that I can actually pass my classes this semester."

"Look, you know you can't focus there. Tomorrow I'll take you to the library where you can focus. Right now there is no way you would be able to focus anyway so let's make the most of it. I am taking you to a chick flick and getting popcorn with extra butter just for you."

"Ok," Mitchie sighed, "but I want Milk-duds."

* * *

"Hey Nate, it's Shane, I'm really confused. I know you're with Caitlyn and Mitchie right now, but could you call me when you get a chance? Bye."

_Why the heck couldn't he pick up his phone?_

Shane threw the phone down on his seat as he continued to drive back to the hotel. Now it was swarming with paparazzi.

_Great, there's no way I can get around this and get back to Nate's parent's without an issue._

As Shane pulled in the paparazzi enveloped the car.

"Shane, do you care to comment on your break up?"

"Shane is there anything you want to say to Tess right now?"

"Are the rumors true? Did Tess cheat on you?"

Shane pushed past the reporters into the hotel. As soon as he reached the elevators they opened and he ran inside, not seeing the other elevator passengers.

"Hey Shane what's up?"

"Oh hi," Shane said, turning to see Tess and Nick standing there, "Leaving for a date?"

"Trying to," Nick answered, "This mess is slowing us down a little."

"No kidding. I'm staying with Nate's parents instead of this insanity," Shane commented.

"That's a wise choice," Tess thought aloud, "Maybe I can go stay at home for the rest of the visit. It's a gated community."

Shane put on an annoyed face as he entered the paparazzo's clutches once more. He yelled back at the elevator that he didn't care what Tess did as long as he didn't have to see her.

The doors closed as Tess pretended to break down in tears. Shane ran to his room, or the best he could with paparazzi all over him. Once alone, he tried to call Nate again just to receive the voice mail again.

_Why won't Nate pick up my calls? Maybe I should try Caitlyn's phone._

_Hello?_

"Caitlyn, great you actually answered your phone."

_Of course I did why wouldn't I?_

"Nate hasn't answered his and Mitchie won't answer hers so I was hoping I could get in contact with someone in Arkansas."

_Well you got me. What's wrong?_

"I'm really confused. Did you know that Jason is here?"

_Yea, he left about two hours after he got here. He dropped of souvenirs for me and Mitchie. Said hello to her parents and then left._

"Well, Caitlyn if you know that than can you tell me why he's here? He was supposed to talk care of Mitchie while I was with Tess and you and Nate were together on dates and stuff."

_I…um…oh look here's Nate_

Shane heard the phone switch hands.

_Hello?_

"Nate, what's going on? Jason is out here and I'm here and I'm really confused."

_Jason wanted to visit his family what's so confusing about that?_

"Let's think, oh, probably the fact that he's staying with _your_ family."

_Oh, well, then I have no clue what he's doing out there. I mean he probably wanted to see Sarah because she's like his little sister, you know. You're the same way with her as he is._

"Yea, but I don't travel just to see Sarah. You're always there when I visit unless my parents are out of town."

_But you know Jason, he's…sensitive to being an only child and with his dad in the marines. He has no one really to rely on for guidance._

"I guess that makes sense. So now that Jason is gone, can I talk to Mitchie?"

_Sorry dude, no can do. When she found out you weren't coming into town she decided to stay at school for the weekend. She said she had a lot of homework to do. Something about so many projects that it was actually a good thing that you couldn't make it._

"Ok. I guess that makes sense. I got to go fight paparazzi. Later, dude."

_See ya._

Shane threw his phone at the bed in frustration as he packed his things back into his suitcase.

* * *

"Ok Jason. Now that we saw the movie, got ice cream, and got chased by the paparazzi because you were noticed can we please go back to Nate's parent's house?"

"I guess," Jason sighed, "I just thought you would want to go site seeing while you were here. I thought maybe we could go hit the Hollywood walk of fame where the hand prints are, but I guess I'll save that for tomorrow."

"Jason, you said you would take me to the library to study tomorrow."

"I will, I will, but if you get done quickly now you have a reward. Wouldn't you rather sit out on the deck at the beach house instead of in a stuffy library?"

"No, I want to go to a library where there are books and tables and the wind isn't blowing away my research."

"But what about birds? There aren't birds inside either."

"Jason, I know you love nature, and I love it too, but there are times when you just have to be in a library. What do you have against libraries anyway?"

"My mom is a librarian. She always used to drag me to work with her. I would sit in the children's section surrounded by books until I was ten. Then my dad was relocated, he's a marine, and she got a new job at this new library that didn't have a children's section, so she stopped bringing me to work with her."

"Wow, I didn't know that. It's not something you would find in an interview or something."

"No. It's one of the questions you don't really answer if you get asked in the music business either. I mean, me having a mother obsessed with silence at work. She let me have a guitar only because it was something to do other than sit and watch birds."

Mitchie laughed as Jason pulled the car up to Nate's parent's house. He got out and open the door for Mitchie.

_I wish Shane was here to open doors for me._

Mitchie yawned.

"Wow, you sound tired. Maybe you should just go to bed."

"Maybe you're right Jason. Thanks for taking me out on the town tonight. It was really nice of you."

"We would all do anything for the voice, Mitchie."

Mitchie blushed at his comment before heading into the house and up to her guest room. She quickly shut the door behind her and ran over to her laptop. By four o'clock in the morning, she had finished all her projects and crashed on the bed without even taking off her shoes.

'_Hey you, don't let 'em see you frown, Come on turn it upside down. Don't ever quit, get up, get up. When life, puts you to the test, there's nothing better than your best. Show 'em what you got, you got a lot. Show 'em what you got, get up, get up. Get up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up.'_

_What's going on? 8:30? I didn't even realize I fell asleep. Well, the work is done that's a good thing. Maybe I'll get a glimpse of the break up today. Maybe I can talk to Shane today. Well, if I don't I can always look forward to a walk on the beach or a Hollywood walk of fame with Jason this afternoon…I just wish I could do that with Shane…_

Mitchie sat up, noticing that she was still fully dressed, and headed for the bag of clothing she had thrown in the corner.

Pulling out a new outfit, she rushed through the bedroom door, out into the hall, passed Nate's room, and into the bathroom.

_A shower sounds so nice right now, _Mitchie thought stepping into the shower, _Was that really Nate's room I passed? I mean that's what Sarah said yesterday, but Jason went in there last night and there were three beds in there just now. Jason sure brought a lot of luggage with him. There had to be three full bags in there just now. That's funny; I don't remember seeing him carry them from the airport._

Once Mitchie was fully dressed, she headed towards the stairs, passing by her guest room and Nate's room again. This time the door was closed and there was music coming from within.

Mitchie thought nothing of it as she headed down to the kitchen to find Sarah and Jason conversing over omelets and toast.

"Good morning Mitchie," Sarah greeted, "How did you sleep?"

"I slept very well apparently. I don't exactly remember dragging myself over to the bed and falling asleep."

* * *

Shane pressed the repeat button on the CD as Mitchie's voice again filled the speakers.

'_She was given the world/So much that she couldn't see/ And she needed someone to show her,/ Who she could be./ And she tried to survive/Wearing her heart on her sleeve  
But I needed you to believe…'_

_Man, I wish I could see her. I miss her so much…I wonder where Jason went…he had something to tell me last night, but when I got back here, he was already asleep. Oh, well…it's Jason…it probably wasn't too important. He can show me today and then he can drive me to the airport._

Shane finished changing and headed for the kitchen.

* * *

**Ok...so...what do you think? I'm just gonna give a couple shout outs here to Kelsey and Katie because you guys are awesome and any of you who have printed out my story because your parents told you to go to bed because you made me feel so special and you all make me want to write more. Please comment! Comments make the world go round...not really, that's actually God, but my point is they really really excite me so don't forget to comment-Lacey**


	37. I Promise To Make You Proud

**Hey guys! It's been awhile since i put out a chapter. I know that I had planned on upping the amount of chapters, but "life keeps getting in the way." (get it?) For example, I just got my first oppertunity to see a live concert ever! Well... one that I actually had to pay for and wait at a gate to get into. Who do you think I went to see? Of course it was the Jonas Brothers, Demi Lovato featuring the cast of Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam! I'm so excited to see it and even if it doesn't match this story I plan to continue it.**

**Anyways, I hope you like this chapter as it may be the last for a very long time. I leave for college in a week and a half and I might not have a lot of time to write between now and then.**

**I love you readers and I really plan on continuing when I get a chance.**

**

* * *

**

LAST TIME

Shane pressed the repeat button on the CD as Mitchie's voice again filled the speakers.

'_She was given the world/so much that she couldn't see/ and she needed someone to show her, / who she could be. / and she tried to survive/Wearing her heart on her sleeve  
But I needed you to believe…'_

_Man, I wish I could see her. I miss her so much…I wonder where Jason went…he had something to tell me last night, but when I got back here, he was already asleep. Oh, well…it's Jason…it probably wasn't too important. He can show me today and then he can drive me to the airport._

Shane finished changing and headed for the kitchen.

* * *

**NOW**

"So, what do you want to do today?" Caitlyn asked Nate.

They were sitting in the Torres kitchen with orange juice and eggs sitting half eaten on their plates.

"Well, it all depends on what's around to do here. We could go for a walk. I thought we could check out the prairie behind the Torres house or maybe check out the small town we passed through to get here. I thought I spotted a movie theater. That might be fun."

"Have you heard anything from Shane since last night?"

"Not a word. If the plan goes with out a flaw, Mitchie should be seeing Shane any minute now. We won't get any phone calls when that happens anyway."

"Sweet, well, I think it's a little cold for a prairie walk, maybe if you had come visit when there wasn't snow on the ground, but I'm sure we could find something to do in town. I heard someone at Mitchie's church mention going bowling. That could be entertaining."

"Bowling sounds great. Only one problem…I'm a famous rock star."

Caitlyn shook her head.

_When will these boys learn that they are not rock stars? They are pop stars and that's probably all they'll ever be. Come on, I think I did a pretty good job getting me and Mitchie back to school in one piece after the train incident. I could totally handle a disguise for Nate._

Caitlyn crossed her arms and squinted at Nate trying to decide on the best look for him. It would be challenging with his hair being so recognizable, but Caitlyn knew what to do.

"We are going bowling. I can make it happen."

And with that Caitlyn ran upstairs to find Mrs. Torres' hair straightener. She also looked around for a pair of glasses that would do Nate's face justice and make him less recognizable.

_This is perfect. He can just wear these fashion glasses Mitchie has and then with the strait hair no one will know who he is._

Caitlyn returned down the stairs with the items she had collected, sat Nate down at the table, and got down to work. Pretty soon there was a boy with thick, black rimmed glasses and strait hair sitting in front of Caitlyn and she, herself, had problems recognizing him.

"Ready?" Nate asked, standing to get his coat and shoes.

"Yea, I guess so. Mitchie said it's a long walk so let's get going," Caitlyn said pulling on a comfortable pair of boots and an eccentric purple jacket.

"You plan to fit-in in that?" Nate commented, "Don't you think that coat is going to draw some attention?"

"Yea, but then people will be looking at me, not you. It's actually a better plan. Some of the kids in town know me from Mitchie's church and will probably just say something about how vibrant it is. They may ask who you are and I can make something up about how you're an old friend of the Torres family and your name is Ryan."

Nate shrugged as he opened the door for Caitlyn and they began their walk to town.

* * *

"Anyone want to go for a morning walk with me? I've never seen Malibu beach before. Actually I've never seen a Californian beach at all," Mitchie commented, getting up from her seat at the table.

"What happened to homework all day?" Jason questioned, hoping to delay her exit.

"I stayed up late and got it all done," Mitchie shrugged heading for the patio door that lead directly to the beach front.

"But I thought we were going to do some more sight-seeing."

"Jason, we can still sight see later. It's early and I need to wake up. If you and Sarah aren't going with me, then I'll go alone."

"Or you could go with Shane when he decides to show up."

"Sarah, I told you while we were shopping; I'm not going to think about Shane until I see Shane."

At that moment Shane entered the kitchen. He had been totally oblivious to the conversation that had taken place. His mind was on getting on a plane to go see Mitchie. The voice he had inside his head was Mitchie's soon to be first single and that's all he had heard as he had walked into the kitchen for a light morning breakfast.

"Hey Jason, what is this big surprise that you just couldn't wait to show me last night? I have to get on a plane to see-"

"Shane?" Mitchie cut in.

"Hey Mitchie, as I was saying I have to get on a plane to see…" Shane did a double take, "Mitchie! What in the world are you doing here? You didn't answer your phone so I thought you were mad at me. I'm so sorry for putting you through all of that. I just wanted to make you happy," Shane blurted out, engulfing Mitchie in a Jason type hug.

"I'm not exactly sure what I'm doing here. Nate sent Jason and me on this mystery trip. I'm so glad to see you! I know you're sorry, I got your DVD. I missed you so much… we need to talk about a lot of things," Mitchie said, pulling out of the hug and trying to drag Shane to the door.

Shane grabbed a pair of sunglasses and a hat off the counter and followed Mitchie out onto the beach.

The couple walked hand in hand listening to the waves for several minutes. They just wanted to be close to each other. Distance had been hard and just being together in that moment was the happiest thing of all. After several minutes of the sound of crashing waves Mitchie broke the silence.

"So, when's the big show down?"

"What do you mean? Are you and I supposed to be fighting or something?"

"No, Shane, I mean between you and Tess."

"Oh… that… it's done with."

"You mean you already dumped her?"

"Yea, Tane is no more. Tess and I agreed that we would make sure that we broke up at the beginning of the weekend so that I could fly out to Arkansas to be with you. I even have tickets for a ten o'clock flight out there."

"You were going to fly all the way to Arkansas to see me?"

"Mitchie, if you didn't figure it out already, I love you. I know it's kind of soon to say that, but it's true. You have shown me how to love life again, to love music again, and even to love myself again. I don't deserve someone like you in my life. Mitchie, I would have completely canceled the tour to be with you if you had asked me to. You don't have to say it. You and I had an agreement and I'm going to stick to it if it's still what you want."

"I'm glad you feel that way Shane, but I'm still figuring out who I am. I mean, I know who I am as opposed to who I'm not or never going to be, but there are still things I need to figure out. No, I didn't find someone else. I still want to date you, just not yet. You and I agreed on around winter break and as much as I really want to say yes I can't."

"I completely understand. I would never want to push you into a relationship with me. You have a lot on your plate right now too. Caitlyn said you've done nothing but work all week and still had a ton to do when the weekend started."

"You talked to Caitlyn?"

"It was the only way to get any information on you. Alicia said you would help her with homework but that was it. Caitlyn was always with you in classes so I figured it was the easiest way to get ahold of any information. By the way, you should probably find another place to store your journal. Abby knows your hiding spot. She's been pulling it out every couple days and telling Nate what you are writing just to keep us updated. Don't worry, there was nothing deeply personal, just how you were feeling and coping."

Mitchie shook her head with embarrassment.

"I knew my sock drawer wasn't a good enough spot. Just so you know for the future. If I'm mad at you, I normally write more in my songs. My journal is more what I do from day to day, not full emotion."

"I'm the same way. I only keep a song book. My journal became a lost cause years ago."

Mitchie laughed as she heard something behind her.

"Did you hear something?"

Shane turned around to see a camera sticking out of a bush of one of the beach front properties.

"Oh, man. They found us. Nate's going to kill me."

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, the community is gated, but the beach is public domain. The paparazzi found us and now we're going to have to figure out a way to cover this up again. Nate always ends up taking care of it."

"So, why not just tell them I'm here to prepare for the Marcy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. I don't think that is completely lying. I did bring my computer to practice on. Caitlyn finished mixing the music last Monday so I could spend next week working on the vocals more."

"Mitchie, I don't want you telling any more lies. If you say that you're here to practice, then we'll be stuck inside all afternoon in front of your computer. Not that I would mind listening to you sing, but I thought maybe we could go site seeing."

"What is it with you and your band mates wanting to take me site seeing? It's not like I'll never make it to California again."

"Yes, but next time you'll be in a rush to meetings and appointments or you'll be hiding who you are under loads of clothing or wigs. Jason probably even arranged for you to borrow a wig from a friend of a friend already for this trip."

"Who would Jason get a wig from?"

"He's good friends with Hannah Montana. Her friend Lola changes her hair color for every party she goes to. It's kind of obvious it's not real hair. I mean, can you imagine the damage from all that coloring."

Mitchie laughed at this comment, not fully believing it, but as they re-entered Nate's beach house Mitchie heard Jason on the phone.

"Hey Hannah, it's Jason... Yea, it's good to hear from you too... Listen, do you think I could borrow one of Lola's wigs for the weekend? You really expect me to believe that's her real hair? Yes, it's that obvious, Mike's hair isn't brown either. Now about the wig…No, it's not for me… I have a friend in from Arkansas and I don't want rumors spreading about her… She will be soon. She's singing in the Thanksgiving Day parade next week… ok more like two weeks. Can I still borrow the wig? Thanks I owe you Hannah!"

"Hey Jason," Shane said closing the patio door behind Mitchie and him.

"Hey guys. You're all set for the sights today. Hannah said that Lola will be stopping by in the next couple minutes to drop off a wig for Mitchie. I already had called the airport and canceled Shane's ticket back to Arkansas. Don't worry Mitchie; you'll be back for school on Monday. Shane and I will deliver you there ourselves."

"Oh, do I have to go back on Monday?" Mitchie joked as the doorbell rang out.

"I'll get it," Sarah called from upstairs.

Jason headed for the door to say hello to Lola. Mitchie, wanting to see what Lola looked like, followed Jason with Shane's hand still in hers.

"Lola! I didn't know you were dropping by. How are you?"

"I'm doing pretty good. I just wanted to drop this wig off for Jason. Hannah said he could use it."

"Thanks for coming so quickly Lola," Jason smiled at her.

"It's the least I could do for you getting those Tears of Blood tickets for me. Mike really enjoyed the concert."

"It was my pleasure to seal them from Shane. He didn't need them."

Shane grunted behind him before greeting Lola and introducing her to Mitchie.

"Oh, my gosh. You're a singer too? That's so awesome! You and Hannah would be great friends," Lola said, pulling Mitchie in for a hug.

_That's why Jason and Lola are friends. They are both very over excited about everything._

"Yea, I'd love to meet Hannah some time."

"Well, it was good to meet you, but I have to get back to Hannah's sound check. She's been freaking out a lot lately."

"Poor girl, I can't believe she keeps dating sleaze balls," Shane said.

"Yea, she kind of waits until the relationship goes sour before breaking it off. Me and Mike have told her over and over that the guys are bad news, but it takes them being caught with Michaela for her to break it off."

"Well, we'll see you later. Say hi to Hannah and Mike from us."

"I will. I hope the wig works out Mitchie. That's my favorite," Lola said, leaving the house and getting into the back of a limousine.

* * *

"Hey, Caitlyn, right?" a guy approached Caitlyn with a skate board as they entered town.

"Yea, do I know you? I'm sorry I'm horrible with names and places but you look really familiar."

"Yea, I'm Ryan. I go to church with the Torres family. Wow, I'm surprised to see a Camp Rock student in town. I didn't know you guys could leave campus."

"Well, generally we aren't, but I'm staying with Mitchie's parents this weekend and her cousin is in town so while Mitchie drowns in her homework, I thought we could go bowling."

"Hi I'm…" Nate said looking to Caitlyn for help with his name.

"Tyler," Caitlyn mouthed.

"Tyler. It's nice to meet you," Nate said.

"You too, so you're really related to Mitchie, huh?"

"Yea, I'm from her dad's side. My parents needed a place to send me this week."

"Cool. Well, I'm gonna get going. I'm supposed to me Sarah at the theater. We're supposed to see Harry Potter five."

"Sounds like fun. Caitlyn are you sure you want to go bowling, we could see a movie instead," Nate suggested.

"No, I think it would be better to go bowling, N-Tyler. That way Connie doesn't flip her lid."

Ryan laughed at this before waving goodbye and heading in the other direction on his skateboard.

Nate and Caitlyn quickly made their way out of the cold as it started to snow again. After getting shoes and balls, Caitlyn and Nate began their game.

Caitlyn was down by thirty points when Nate thought of something.

"This is kind of our thing, isn't it? I mean last time we got to go out we went bowling too."

"I guess you're right. It's fun though, isn't it?"

"I guess it is. I don't mind smoking your score every time we go out," Nate mentioned with a smirk.

"Ok pop star, whatever you say."

* * *

"Ok pop star, whatever you say."

Shane pulled Mitchie's hand towards the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He seemed really eager to show her one specific star and she had a feeling she knew who's it was.

"Tada," Shane displayed the star with his very own name on it.

Mitchie laughed before pulling out her camera and asking Shane to take a picture of her with the star. Shane obliged and then pulled Mitchie to the next two stars to show Mitchie that Nate and Jason also had stars. Again Mitchie took pictures with these two stars before dragging Shane to the stars she wanted to see. He rolled his eyes when she went to TJ Tyler's star and felt kind of jealous when she begged for a picture with Jake Ryan's star.

_What's wrong with me? Get ahold of yourself, Shane. She likes you. There is a reason she was mad when you came out here with Tess. She can like other famous people without wanting to date them…_

"Shane, are you ok?" Mitchie asked with a look of concern in her eyes.

"Sorry, I'm just a little tired…I guess I…spaced out."

Mitchie grabbed Shane's hand and they continued down the sidewalk.

"Oh, you need a picture with Michael Jackson's star. That's one you can't miss," a voice said from behind them.

"Tess? What are you doing here?"

"You didn't think I wouldn't come say hi to my best friend when I found out she was in town did you?"

"Oh Tess you knew I was here," Shane joked.

Mitchie gave Tess a hug.

"It's so good to see you finally! I can't believe we really haven't seen each other since Camp Rock. How did you escape the paparazzi? I thought they would be swarming you by now?"

"Oh, that was easy. I wore a wig to leave the house and then when I got to a tourist site I took it off. They don't really expect people in the media to go to places only tourists would go. Jason told me that you would be here with Shane. Nice pink hair by the way. Did you borrow it from Hannah's friend?"

"Yea. I felt kind of bad. I had never seen her in my life, but I've watched tons of Hannah Montana interviews. She doesn't normally mention the names of her friends in them."

"Well, they tend to stay out of the media as much as possible. There are only two principle friends she has anyway. She hangs out with some famous people but then she has Lola Luffnegle and Mike Standly. They have no clue how to be in the public eye."

"Well, Lola seemed nice enough."

"She is. If she was famous I would hang out with her more. She seems to disappear when Hannah isn't around though."

"That's quite strange," Mitchie commented as they reached Michael Jackson's star.

"You two get in the picture. I'll take it for you," Tess said taking Mitchie's camera from Shane.

The two stood together with Michael Jackson's star at their feet. Something felt so right at that moment.

_Maybe I'm being stupid…Shane is perfect for me. He loves me and he knows me. He cares about me enough to almost fly to Arkansas for just one or two days of time with me. I've done so much to make him go crazy or not even want to talk to me yet he still loves me. Maybe I should just end this heartache and make us official. We could keep it quiet…between the two of us…that's what Nate and Caitlyn are doing and it's working out for them…_

Tess handed the camera to Mitchie and gave her another hug before saying that she did not want to spoil their date and leaving the same way she came.

"This isn't technically a date…is it?" Shane asked.

"Well, I think we could call it a date. There is nothing wrong with dating without making anything official. I think this is a date. It doesn't have to be, but if you want to call it that, you can."

"Really? Isn't that kind of opposite from what you said this morning?"

"Well, I was thinking about it and I don't know what would be so wrong in making us official-"

"Really! You will be my girlfriend!"

"Shane, keep your voice down…of course I want to be your girlfriend, but I don't want it super publicized. I want us to be together as a couple, but I don't want my fame to come from being your girlfriend. Would that…work for you?"

Shane's smile spread from ear to ear in the way that showed all his teeth.

"I was hoping you would say that. I know it's going to be hard to keep this quiet and we can't tell Jason for sure because the media will know tomorrow if we tell him, but I totally want to keep our relationship out of the media…at least until you start touring on your own-"

"Shane… I don't even have a record deal yet. Let me get that first," Mitchie said, trying to take some of Shane's enthusiasm down a notch. Of course, this did not actually happen; his face just began to glow even more.

"Well, in that case, there were other reasons we were coming to visit you this weekend…"

"Shane Gray…what are you saying?" Mitchie asked, excitement flooding her words.

"A Lava Records associate was going to meet us at your house Sunday to officially ask, but with everything that has happened in the last few days, plans changed. Nate and Jason were going to give you the news, but since you're here and not there, I am going to tell you…"

"Tell me what, Shane! Please you're killing me here," Mitchie stressed, straining her face and pulling on Shane's arm.

"Mitchie Torres… you are being offered a deal with the Lava Records label. If you would like to accept, I can get the representative on the phone right now."

"Yes, yes a million times yes!"

* * *

"Yes, yes a million times yes! That would be so amazing. Wow, so Lava Records is really looking for someone to work as an apprentice this year? How am I supposed to do that with school?"

"Well, Lava wants you to replace your producing class with this apprentice job."

"Ok, so question, how did they hear about me in the first place?"

"They have major connections at Camp Rock and Camp Rock High School."

"So, this isn't because of you?"

"No, not at all. Lava was going to send us here this weekend anyway to tell you about it. In fact, you weren't supposed to find out until the Lava representative got here to tell you with us, but since Shane, Jason and Mitchie are in Malibu I got the ok to tell you by myself."

"Well, who do I call? And how am I supposed to have an apprentice job and still go to Camp Rock High?"

"I'll get the executives on the phone and you'll work with a special program that will start in January."

"Oh my gosh! I can't believe this is really happening!" Caitlyn said, jumping up and down and hugging Nate.

They had left the bowling alley after two consecutive losses by Caitlyn. They had passed a music supplies store when Caitlyn had mentioned how much she wanted to work with up and coming artists. Nate had found it the perfect time to tell Caitlyn the exciting news and knew Shane would be doing something similar that very same day. He pulled out his cell phone and dialed a number before handing the phone over to Caitlyn.

* * *

Shane handed Mitchie the phone.

"Hello," Mitchie said into the phone.

"Congratulations on being discovered by Lava Records. We would really like to support you and take you as our own recording artist. Would you like that?"

"Oh, my gosh, this is really happening…of course I would!"

"Wonderful, your first single will come out right after the parade in New York next week. Congratulations and the owner of Lava Records will be in touch with you in the next week."

Mitchie stared at the phone in disbelief, her hundred watt smile reaching its limits.

_Oh my gosh…that was way too surreal…wait, what's my single? Who sent them my demo? Shouldn't I be doing more to make this dream come true for myself? How does Shane just know this stuff? I mean he said Lava wanted to tell me with the rest of Connect 3… There's something missing in the story…_

Mitchie furrowed her brow, something that Shane missed as he held her in his arms. This was right, Mitchie being in his arms completed him. She was just what he needed in his life. He loved how much she cared about him. Mitchie's devotion to Connect 3 and its members surpassed anything he could have imagined.

Shane had brought girls into his life many times before, but every time he did Nate or Jason came up with an excuse for her not being good for him. The girls that passed their test always failed with Sarah or Nate's parents. No one had ever made it into their house and actually felt completely welcome. Mitchie had made it passed all his roadblocks up to this point.

Shane never brought girls home to his parents. He never seemed to please them. They had not wanted him to pursue a career in music. His father, like Jason's, was a military man, strong and determined. The only thing Peter Gray had wanted for his son was a college degree and to see his son graduate from military school. No music nonsense was acceptable in a military family. You needed to be strong and powerful. Playing sappy love songs showed weakness. The Gray men were not weak.

Grace had seen Shane's potential as a musician and thought that it would be a great way for Shane to let out his emotion. She had never intended Shane to become a performer professionally. Her brother, Brown, had told her that he would take care of Shane at the camp and see that he succeeded in his musical endeavors. Grace never imagined a life of musical success surpassing Shane becoming better at guitar and maybe teaching lessons to help pay for college.

When Shane was asked to sign with Lava Records, Peter had been on tour in the Atlantic. He rarely had chances to converse with his wife and son. Grace was pushed into the position of decision maker. She attended numerous consultations with Shane, the other boys and their families, and Lava Records. Danni, Ken and Kendal all agreed to the contract stating that it was something their boys really wanted and they saw potential in their sons to be great. Jason's dad, Scott, had been on tour in England with his battalion and had not attended either.

Grace had been hesitant to sign permission for her son and had originally said no. She thought that if the other two sets of parents wanted their sons to go running around the country that was fine, but her son would not be going with them.

_This is it…_Shane had thought, _my best friends will go on the road and become famous, but I'll stay home and be a good little boy… Maybe I can become a tour manager after college. That could be fun, helping bands with their schedule and meeting famous people. I can even tell the famous people what to do._

The blissful child that Grace had raised mostly by herself became very distant with his mother very quickly. He had returned home after his mother's final decision and packed his guitar away in the attic. For a week he would leave for school without breakfast, come home and head strait to his room. When his mother would call him for dinner, they would sit in silence. Grace abhorred the change she saw in Shane. Her baby had accepted his role in society. That's what she had wanted…wasn't it?

After a week and a half Grace had had it. She picked him up from school, an irregularity, and driven all night from Arizona to Los Angeles, California. All the while sitting in silence and not taking one look at Shane. The fear in Shane's eyes was evident. He had no clue what was happening or why his mother was driving like a maniac and not answering a single question.

Near one in the morning, Grace had pulled into a motel, checked in a room and ordered Shane to bed with one word, "bed." Worried about what was in store for him, Shane had not slept very well that night at all.

Grace woke her 15 year old little boy at the early hour of seven in the morning and dragged him back to the car. Again the silence came into play as they drove to a pancake house not far from the motel.

"Eat," Grace had instructed.

Shane had obeyed quickly, hearing the strained sound in his voice as if his mother was doing something she was not happy about.

"Mom," Shane had said meekly.

Grace had stopped eating and looked up at her only child with tear stains going down her face.

"What's wrong? Is dad ok?"

Grace could only nod at her son's concern and drowned her pancakes in tears once again.

"Mom, what's wrong? You picked me up from school and didn't say a thing, and then you drive me seven hours away from home in silence, on a school night no less. You haven't said a word to me in the last two days and all I've done is what you asked.

"I haven't complained about not ever seeing my best friends again except when I buy tickets to see their name in lights or even about the fact that Camp Rock is probably out of the question for next summer. I dropped the guitar and singing. I thought that would make you happy.

"I'm joining society, bringing my grades up, and working towards joining a sport. Dad always wanted me to do drill team and I've already talked to the coach…I want you to be happy… Mom, please stop crying, tell me what's going on. You're scaring me."

Grace had sobbed harder, but a smile appeared on her face. Getting up from her seat, she came over and wrapped her arms around her son. She had seen her son's concern and his helplessness as a result of her tears and had known that he would make it. Success was in his blood and he would never give up, a quality that she had admired in his father.

She quickly had paid for the check and dragged Shane back to the car. She drove straight to the Lava Records headquarters and pulled Shane out of the car.

"Before you go in," she had said tearfully, "I want you to know I love you. Even though this isn't the life I would have picked for you, I'm going to sign the papers. I miss my son who was so full of life. Music does that for you and there's nothing I can do about that. Your father is not exactly thrilled with my decision, but you need to do this."

Shane gave his mother a hug, with a tear reaching his own eye.

"Thank you, Mom. I promise to make you proud."

Still after three years, and three records there was a rift between Shane and his father and mother. He never forgot his promise to his mother and it drove his dream even more. His father never came to his concerts, even when he was on land. Shane was his downfall. Peter saw Shane as the results of his failure as a parent.

Looking down at Mitchie at that moment showed him more than just a girl that had taken his heart by surprise; it show him yet another thing that his mother would be proud of.

The two separated and continued down the sidewalk holding hands. When they left the tourist trap they separated their hands, but continued to walk together down the street.

'_You need that boy like a bowling ball dropped on your head, which means not at all. You have too much to give, to live to waste your time on him'_

Mitchie fumbled for her phone.

"Hello?"

_Mitchie! You'll never guess who I just got off the phone with._

"Hmm… let me think…Bono?"

_Haha very funny…No, really you'll never guess…I just got off the phone with, get this, Lava Records!_

"Wow!"

_I know! They want me to intern for the label as a musical producer. Apparently, they heard about Final Jam and liked it a lot._

"That's incredible! I have news too, but I'll tell you when I get home. You'll never guess who I'm spending my day with and what I'm wearing."

_I know you're with Shane actually. You do realize this was Nate's plan right? You know? He's the guy I'm dating._

Mitchie laughed.

_I just had to tell you now. I'm sorry if I interrupted your date. Oh, and you should just become a couple already. I don't know why you're protesting so much…_

"Ok."

_Ok. Is that all you got? Ok? Come on, Mitchie, you know that school isn't a reason not to be with him anymore. He's gonna get restless soon._

"Ok."

_Are you even listening to me? Because all you're saying is ok, and it's getting kind of annoying. Mitchie, I'm trying to be serious with you and all you're saying is 'ok.'_

"I am quite aware that you are being very solemn about this conversation and what I have to say is ok. I understand your side of the story and I agree."

_Did we miss something? Is there something I don't know? Nate, do you know anything I don't know? What are you saying Mitchie?_

"Shane and I are unofficially official."

_Oh…My…Gosh…You're serious…You swear you're not pulling my leg?_

"I promise you that I don't lie…anymore."

_Ahhh! This is so crazy! I'm so happy for you! Now we can double date!_

Mitchie laughed again, following Shane into a restaurant.

_So, what have you been doing on your first date as a couple?_

"We went for a walk on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and did the tourist thing there. Shane showed me his star and now we're stopping for lunch. How's your day with Nate going?"

_Well, his name isn't Nate today…It's Tyler and he's your cousin, ok? We went bowling and for a walk around town._

"Wow! How is Nate holding up? Did you run into any fans?"

_Oh, plenty of them, you know, from your church. But I got that covered. I straitened his hair and he borrowed your vanity glasses. I hope you don't mind._

"I don't mind at all…they were a gift from my little cousins anyway. I figured I'd never really use them unless I got famous and needed a cover. The purpose is being tested by Nate I guess and it's working."

_Well, I got to go. Nate is cooking lunch and he needs some help. I'll call you later._

"Oh la, la, fancy. Ok, bye."

Mitchie returned her phone to her purse, looking around the restaurant.

It appeared to be a Dutch inspired pancake house. The paintings on the wall had little girls in wooden shoes and little boys with charming smiles.

"Pancakes? For lunch?" Mitchie inquired.

"This is my favorite place in all of L.A. My mom and I went here right before I got signed I figured this could be a memory for you too," Shane explained, "They serve things other than pancakes."

Mitchie smiled at the thought of Shane sitting in a booth filled with excitement at starting a career with his best friends.

"You came here before you got signed? Why here?"

"My mom picked it I guess. She eats pancakes every time she cries. It's just something she does," Shane shrugged.

"Why did she cry?"

"Show business isn't exactly something my parents strived for me to be. My dad doesn't really like anything about my lifestyle. He remembers Uncle Brown touring with Mick Jagger and how crazy life got because of it. That's not something a military man strives for his son to be."

"She was…upset? But didn't she know how good you were?"

"She knew I was good…She knew that not everyone got that opportunity… ever… Her brother did tour with major bands. She just wanted what she thought was more for me. I think she wanted to make sure she and I didn't let my dad down. She originally completely turned down the deal. She wouldn't sign the consent forms at all. One look, and she said no.

"I was used to the word no. I was used to listening to everything my parents said and accepting it. I had moved three times the year before and I knew that when my parents made decisions I just had to live with them; so, I packed up my guitar and stored it in the attic. My dream wasn't any fun anymore…not when I could never see it as a reality. I had gotten my chance and I had lost it."

"So, what happened?"

"I'm not really sure… About a week and a half later, she showed up at school… I normally took the bus to the base where my dad was stationed when he was home…but she was there…ready to take me home. I don't know what happened that day, but we didn't go home. We headed directly for the highway. She didn't say a word to me and I didn't feel much like talking considering what she had done to me with the record deal…We stopped and slept for a few hours…Then we ended up here, ate a pancake and went to Lava trying to get the deal back."

"Wow. I can't believe that she would deny you your dream and then change her mind."

"I know, but I did promise her something. I know I can't please my dad; he's never even come to a concert…but I promised my mom that I would make her proud of me even if I couldn't do that for my dad. She's never missed a concert in her town since. Right now she's in Michigan, but she could be anywhere next year. My dad has been on tour in the Atlantic since I started recording. He's only been home three times since and I've been on tour then. I know he's disappointed in me, but I'm ok with the fact that I haven't seen my father in three years. I have enough parents to take care of me…my mom, Kendal, Danni, Ken and Scott keep me in line…most of the time."

"So, your dad won't be in New York for the parade?"

"No, he's too busy with work…Christmas has been pretty small with me, my mom and Uncle Brown."

"Oh, Shane…I'm sorry I brought it up."

"It's ok. No one expects that to come out of my mouth. I always avoid family questions in interviews. Nate, Sarah and Jason are my family. I've gotten used to it. Scott, Jason's dad is on tour too so it's not really that big of a deal. Last Christmas Brown had Jason and his mom in addition to me and my mom for the festivities. It was actually a lot of fun."

Shane smiled for the first time since he had walked into the restaurant. His eyes seemed to light up as he talked about what his mother had allowed him to do with his life.

Mitchie was happy to finally have more information about Shane's life. She had been a big Connect 3 fan, but had never delved into their private lives. Now that she was more than a fan, she was happy to learn about the man she had fallen for only four months earlier.

* * *

"Mmm…this is really good Nate. Do you cook often?"

"Yea, actually it's kind of a hobby of mine. I cooked a lot before I started touring. My mom used to work the evening shift at the local hospital in Wyckoff. So she would have me start the dinner and my dad would finish when he got home from the church. Dad loved my cooking. He even thinks I could start my own restaurant once I'm done touring. I love cooking and would love my own restaurant but I would rather be making music."

"I totally get that. My parents were never around and when they sent me to private schools I didn't really get to experience talent shows and stuff…I joined the band program, but I was never really all that good on any of the instruments so I quit. One summer they sent me to dance camp and I loved it. The next year the friends I had met there decided to try Camp Rock for back up dancer experience. My parents decided I could go too and that's when I learned about music production. I still love to dance and would totally back up a singer, but I think music production has become my favorite thing in the world. Like you said, you could open a restaurant; I could probably open a dance studio and teach classes fairly well."

"That's very interesting…So what did Mitchie say about the internship?"

"She was really excited for me. Oh, and I have some more news…You know how Mitchie had said she wasn't ready to be a girlfriend? Well, she's decided now is the time to say yes. She wants to keep it quiet…I think, but at least they are finally unofficially official."

Nate laughed as the basement door opened to reveal Mr. Torres.

"Hey guys. I've been working on this thing for Mitchie and I want to see what you think. I need suggestions."

* * *

**So? What do you think? What's the surprise for Mitchie? Do you think that Shane and Mitchie will last? How about Nate and Caitlyn? Please let me know your thoughts and what you see happening in the future! Even if you don't have an account I want to know what you're thinking! Please, please comment!**


	38. Burgers

HAPPY AMERICAN HOLIDAY WEEKEND! This chapter is kinda short, I know, but I hope you like it!

* * *

LAST TIME

"She was really excited for me. Oh, and I have some more news…You know how Mitchie had said she wasn't ready to be a girlfriend? Well, she's decided now is the time to say yes. She wants to keep it quiet…I think, but at least they are finally unofficially official."

Nate laughed as the basement door opened to reveal Mr. Torres.

"Hey guys. I've been working on this thing for Mitchie and I want to see what you think. I need suggestions.

* * *

NOW

Mitchie looked over to Shane as the sun set beyond the ocean. The sun illuminated the smile that had not left his face since Mitchie had grabbed his hand leaving the pancake house. Beneath their feet the sand shifted with each step they took, leaving two sets of foot prints behind them.

"What are we doing tomorrow?" Mitchie asked, squinting to see Shane's face.

"Well, as much as I hate it, you have to go back to school. Jason said that we can take the jet anytime we want, but I thought that we could get there early and spend the day at your house. The record label representative is going to your house, after all, for your parents to sign the final consent forms."

Mitchie nodded, her smile creeping up to her eyes as Shane mentioned the record label.

"My dad wants to meet you too. Don't worry; he's nothing like your dad. He is very supportive of my dream and he's interested to meet you. We might want to keep us a secret from my parents for now. I think that's a step my dad won't be ready to take," Mitchie chuckled.

Shane scrunched his nose, making Mitchie laugh harder.

"I'm sorry, Miss Torres. Do you find my confusion amusing?" Shane said, letting go of Mitchie's hand and wrestling her into the sand.

"What if I did?" Mitchie panted through bouts of laughter.

"I might just have to tickle you senseless," Shane joked, "But really, why can't we tell your parents? Is your dad over protective or something?" He asked, stopping the tickle fest and returning to his brow-furrowed face.

"I-I've never really…I didn't have many friends growing up. It was just me and Sierra and my dad isn't used to that yet. He acts like Caitlyn is his other daughter and Rachel and Abby are just classmates of mine who need to get to church and back. I guess what I'm trying to say is that he's not used to me having friends and I've never ever had a boyfriend. It's kind of a foreign concept…"

"So you think this will weird him out too much?"

"Just at the beginning…I promise that I'll tell him before Christmas. Mom will be happy for me and Dad knows I like you, but for now that's enough for him. Ok?"

"Do I really have a choice?"

Mitchie considered this for a moment. She wanted to say no, but at the same time she was hoping he would push her to tell her father. Part of her worry was about the relationship not lasting. If she told too many people it would get out and everyone would want a piece of her romance story. Her parents wouldn't leave them alone, Sierra would beg for details or try to get Mitchie to get Shane to get Jason to call her and ask her out, and the paparazzi would never leave them alone.

"Yes," Mitchie replied finally.

"Well, then, I would rather you tell him. I know it's new and different to you and your family, but it's ok to be nervous to tell people. Don't you think it would be better for your family to know instead of sneaking around when I visit?"

Mitchie considered this and nodded in agreement.

Shane got up and offered Mitchie his hand. Mitchie took it and the two continued down the beach towards Nate's parent's house where they could see smoke rising from the back porch.

"I guess it's a barbeque night," Shane commented.

"As long as it's not burgers, I think that sounds good."

"You don't like hamburgers?"

"I like them, but they remind me of my old job at Barney's Burgers and I'm not really a fan of them anymore."

"Oh, I get it," Shane said as the two reached the porch.

"Hey, are you joining us for dinner?" Sarah asked, heading out onto the porch for dinner.

"What's dinner?" Shane asked, planning on going out if it was burgers for Mitchie's sake.

Just then Danni exited the house with a bag of burger buns.

"I think I'm gonna take Mitchie out for sushi or something tonight. We're only gonna be in town until tomorrow morning and there are still things I want her to see."

Only five minutes later, Shane was helping Mitchie into Ken's sports car, a gift from Nate, and heading onto the open road in search of a sushi bar near the Lava Records Studio.

"I want to show you the studio that you'll be working at with Lava," Shane explained upon Mitchie's questions.

"You know, I'll be able to do that when I'm here next time."

"I know, but you're already famous to the record label and there are people who really want to meet you. There's some other things I wanted to do too. That's only one stop for tonight. I promise it's not all for business," Shane reassured her.

* * *

"So what do you think?" Mr. Torres asked, as he reemerged from the basement with Caitlyn and Nate.

Caitlyn couldn't believe it. Mr. Torres was possible the most awesome father a girl could have. Mitchie was so lucky.

"What colors are you thinking about?" Nate asked Mr. Torres.

"Well, I was thinking dark warm colors like blacks and browns."

"Oh, you can't do that," Caitlyn said, "You need to use a mix of bright and dark colors. If you want to use black, then use yellows and bright pinks. Never mix black and brown. It's a clash. Mitchie would probably like it if you used black and pink or black and baby blue or something."

"Caitlyn's right, but parts of it should be dark because it helps with thought processing. Maybe make it different blue tones. You know, like make the sofa's sky blue and the walls ocean blue."

"Thank you guys; I really appreciate your input. Now, go have some fun. Connie should be back from the store soon and then we'll have dinner."

"Wow, I didn't realize we were down in the basement that long," Caitlyn commented.

The surprise Mr. Torres had been planning had become very expansive and had incorporated a lot. He had a lot of ideas for what he wanted to do and with the help of Caitlyn and Nate he was able to bring the ideas into a more realistic perspective. He couldn't wait to see her face when she finally got to see it.

Caitlyn and Nate wandered into the den and found an old board game lying around. Thinking that it would be a good time filler and something to do before dinner, the two sat down and began their game of Master-Mind.

* * *

"Thank you so much for dinner Shane. I didn't think I would like sushi, but it was really good for raw fish."

Shane laughed as they neared Lava Records. Once he had pulled into an exclusive Connect 3 parking space, the two headed into the building.

"Shane, we weren't expecting you today? Did you have studio time today? How's the tour going?" the receptionist asked as the two entered the building.

She stood up, quickly grabbing a clipboard from the wall and coming out from behind the desk. Her long brown hair fell into her face as she looked down to see if she had missed something.

"You're not on the schedule, but I'm sure we can find a studio for you today."

"It's ok Joanie. I'm actually not here for me today."

"Oh," Joanie said looking up and recognizing Mitchie's presence in the room for the first time, "Who is this?"

The way Joanie had spat out the question told Mitchie everything she needed to know about the receptionist. Joanie had a crush on Shane; that much was clear. She simply couldn't stand still around him and she felt threatened but Mitchie's presence even when Shane wasn't even holding Mitchie's hand. Her pretty little over colored hair only proved that she wanted more than friendship from the artists at the label.

I wonder if she knows how ridiculous she's being. Does that work with other clients?

"Hi, I'm Mitchie Torres," Mitchie said, extending her hand to shake Joanie's.

"Oh, my gosh. I'm so sorry. I didn't realize you were her. Wow, well, ok… I guess I should let Dave know you're here. Shane, have you cleared this with-"

"Yea, I talked to him earlier. I figured we could get this meeting done while she's here. Dave is dying to meet her."

"As are all of us, I think you could really be a hit Mitchie. The record company has been buzzing ever since your demo got here."

Mitchie looked at Shane, shocked at all the attention the receptionist was giving her. She was shocked at the change in respect Joanie had shown when she had found out that she was talking to an artist instead of an acquaintance of Shane's.

Just then a door opened on the right and a middle aged man appeared. He quickly turned to Joanie, "Joanie, what's all this noise. I'm waiting for an important client to get here and I need to finish listening to the demo again before she gets here. Could you keep it down?"

"Sorry Dave," Joanie apologized, "Do you want them to wait?"

She was clearly a natural blonde. Her airhead attitude about what Dave had just said proved it.

Dave looked up from the MP3 player in his hand.

"Oh, hello…Joanie, why didn't you tell me they were here."

"They just got here. I was about to call you."

Dave pressed a button on his MP3 player and removed the headphones from his ears before turning to Shane and Mitchie.

"Shane good to see you and this must be the famous Mitchie Torres," Dave said, extending a hand to a very red Mitchie.

"Nice to meet you Dave," Mitchie responded, taking his hand.

"Well, come in to my office and we can talk. I understand you are going to be back at Camp Rock tomorrow evening. I just have a couple things I want to talk to you about and the rest I'm sure Brown will discuss with you tomorrow,"

What does Brown have to do with this? Is he some kind of employee of Lava?

* * *

_Ding, dong._

"Caitlyn, can you get that? I have my hands full of brownie batter," Connie called from the kitchen.

Caitlyn got up from her seat at the couch with Nate and went to the door. Nate followed her out of the room, knowing who was at the door. She opened the door to come face to face with Brown Cesario.

"Hello Caitlyn. How are you this fine day?"

Brow furrowed, Caitlyn smiled and invited Brown into the house.

"Hey Brown," Nate said, shaking hands with the camp director.

"Well, Caitlyn, judging from your expression I have a lot of explaining to do. Would you mind if we sat down and had a little chat?"

Caitlyn, still very confused and speechless as to why Brown was visiting her on a weekend and could not wait until Monday to talk to her, lead Brown and Nate back into the living room.

Finally finding her voice she asked, "Not to be rude or anything, but what are you doing here on a weekend?"

"I'm not here about school or camp. This is a business call. As I know Nate has informed you, Lava Records has offered you a spot in our intern program."

"Our intern program? What do you mean? Does Camp Rock have an intern program? I thought I was going to be working with Lava Records."

"You are, love. I'm the President of Lava Records."

"No."

"Yes," Nate corrected Caitlyn.

"I own Lava Records. I bought it out at the beginning of the summer to keep a better eye on my nephew. Now, I don't want you to think this is because you are friends with him or because of Mitchie or anything…"

"What does this have to do with Mitchie?"

"Oi, she hasn't told you yet? Well, I don't want to steal her excitement. Forget I mentioned it."

"Ok…"

"My point is that you really are talented and so I choose you to work with Lava Records as the intern this year. The chances are quite high for you to get a permanent position in the company if you take this."

"I don't know how I could say know," Caitlyn said, squeezing Nate's hand.

"Alright then, starting Monday you will attend Mitchie's voice lessons with her. No more music production class in the morning and we'll move your piano lessons into that slot."

Caitlyn groaned.

"What? I thought you would be happy about this."

"I am, I just remembered my piano homework. I totally forgot about it in the excitement of visitors and spending the weekend away from school."

Brown chucked as he stood up and shook Caitlyn's hand one last time before saying he was excited about the rest of the year and goodbye to both of the teens in his presence.

Once the front door had opened and closed Caitlyn began to scream. Nate reached for his ears. He had not been expecting that result after he told her the evening before.

"Nate I can't believe this is really happening! It's so much more real now. I know you told me yesterday, but now it's right here…it's in my grasp, you know?"

Nate smiled at his girlfriend before pulling her into a hug to show her how proud he was of her. Someone from behind them cleared their throat and they sprang apart.

"Sorry to put a damper on your excitement, but I'm acting as mom for Caitlyn this weekend and as such I would prefer that the public displays of affection stay to a minimum in this house," Mrs. Torres said, walking passed the living room.

Caitlyn, already red with excitement, glowed like a strawberry while Nate's cheeks began to change colors as well.

"Mrs. Torres! You wouldn't believe what just happened."

Connie re-entered the room with a look of curiosity.

"Caitlyn just got asked to work as an intern for Lava Records," Nate interjected.

Connie could not help but beam for Caitlyn as well as run over and give her a hug herself.

"That's amazing Caitlyn. Maybe you will get to work on the boy's next CD."

"I hope so," Nate commented, "Then we could spend more time together after tour or maybe during some of tour."

"That would be great," Caitlyn smiled all the way to her eyes.

"Well, kids, dinner's ready if you want to eat now. Mr. Torres is just finishing up a coat of paint in the basement and then he'll be up for dinner too. Have you heard the good news from Mitchie yet?"

Caitlyn again gave Nate a questioning look to Nate.

"No, Shane told me he was taking Mitchie out to dinner tonight, so she's been a little preoccupied to call. Oh, but she'll be home tomorrow morning to meet with Brown," Nate said following Mrs. Torres towards the kitchen for dinner.

* * *

"So, Mitchie, I know that you worked professionally on this demo CD, but what would you say to recording one tonight?" Dave asked.

"Ok, but what would I sing?"

Shane smiled. He had talked to Dave about this before.

"How about our duet? It's all over the internet already, but wouldn't it be cool to actually record it in a real recording studio?"

Mitchie considered her options briefly before standing up saying, "Then what are we waiting for?"

The two followed Dave into another room in Lava's headquarters. Inside was a sound proof room and another room with a bunch of technical items Mitchie knew about from her production class. Dave directed Mitchie and Shane into the sound proof side of the room and started the teentube version of Mitchie's song into the head phones on the stands, instructing Shane to do the same.

After two and a half hours of recording, Mitchie felt exhausted and Shane told Dave it was time to go. Dave agreed, almost falling asleep at the mixing table.

"I'll send this to Brown tonight and you two can finish recording on sight tomorrow. He told me he hired a new intern last night so I'm sure it's going to sound great. I guess I can't really mess with the boss though, can I?" Dave joked with Shane.

There he goes bringing up Brown as if he's really important to Lava Records. What's going on? I'll look it up online tonight…

* * *

**Ok, so? what do you think is gonna happen when Mitchie finds out that Brown was auditioning her for his own lable without telling her? how about mitchie and caitlyn's friendship? will it last when Caitlyn finds out Mitchie didn't tell her about her success first? What about the basement? What's going on down there?**


	39. Can You Say Awkward?

**Hey guys I know this is short, but it's leading up to some heavy stuff so don't worry.**

* * *

LAST TIME

"I'll send this to Brown tonight and you two can finish recording on sight tomorrow. He told me he hired a new intern last night so I'm sure it's going to sound great. I guess I can't really mess with the boss though, can I?" Dave joked with Shane.

_There he goes bringing up Brown as if he's really important to Lava Records. What's going on? I'll look it up online tonight…_

* * *

NOW

'_Hey you, don't let 'em see you frown, Come on turn it upside down. Don't ever quit, get up, get up. When life, puts you to the test, there's nothing better than your best. Show 'em what you got, you got a lot. Show 'em what you got, get up, get up. Get up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up.'_

_Ugg…that was the shortest night sleep ever…wait… my alarm went off. I thought that I just went to sleep…That was a really good dream. Well, that kind of stinks that that was a dream…I would have like to have been signed. I'm sure being Shane's girlfriend would have been absolutely amazing, but I guess dreams are just those…dreams._

With that last thought, there was a knock at the door. Mitchie sat up calling, "Come in."

There he was standing in the door, just tempting her to pinch herself to remind her she was awake. Laden with a pancake breakfast complete with orange juice and decorative daisy on the tray, Shane made his way over to the bed.

"Good morning, Superstar."

"Good morning, Pop-star, but I wouldn't call me a superstar…yet."

Shane sat down on the bed, handing Mitchie the breakfast he had made for and frowned.

"What? Why are you frowning?" Mitchie asked, slightly concerned.

"Well, it's just…I made this breakfast for a superstar and if you're not a superstar… maybe I should just take it back," Shane said, jokingly lunging for the pancake plate.

"No! You were right about that superstar, just wait…I'll be the biggest superstar you have ever heard of… besides Connect 3," Mitchie said, looking up thoughtfully at the ceiling.

Shane laughed before presenting Mitchie something else. It was a small velvet box with an M on it. Mitchie's breath caught in her throat as to what this was supposed to mean. He got off the bed and bent down on one knee, scaring Mitchie senseless.

"Mitchie Torres," Shane began with a smile, "Would you-"

"Shane this is crazy. We've only gone on one real date and it ended in a business call. I don't think I'm even old enough for you to ask me that. I haven't even turned seventeen yet!"

Shane laughed, glad to be receiving the answer he expected. Mitchie gave him a funny look.

"I was wondering if you would like this necklace. Yea, we are waaaay too young to get married. Besides, I want to get to know you better before I ask you that question."

Shane opened the box displaying a necklace containing a charm in the shape of a guitar. It was simple, yet elegant. The rubies on the neck of the guitar glimmered in the light emerging from the window.

"Wow, Shane. It's really beautiful," Mitchie said, taking the silver chain from the box, "Can you help me?" She asked gesturing to the chain and her neck.

"Sure," Shane said, getting up from the floor and helping to put the chain around her neck, his hands shaking at how nervous he was.

Shane had dated a lot of girls, but this was the first time he had actually been nervous to give a girl a gift of any kind. Girls had refused his gifts, put them on themselves, thought they were cheap considering his standard, and even gone and sold them after their break up, but Mitchie was different. He could see the caring in her eyes. He felt her concern for him and his feelings even when they were miles apart. Mitchie had motives to getting mad. Mitchie had reasons to ignore his phone calls. Mitchie didn't want anything from him. Mitchie never treated him like a famous person. To him Mitchie was just a girl who made him feel like he was just a boy, not some conceited rock-star without feelings.

When he finally managed to get the necklace clasped around Mitchie's neck she ran to the mirror.

"What do you think? Is it me enough?"

"You're beautiful," Shane commented.

Mitchie's face change colors quickly to bright red. She had never really heard that from a boy outside of the family. Of course, her father had told her that he thought she was a very beautiful girl and her grandfather had always told her how pretty she was and how big she had grown every time he saw her, but this was different. In front of her stood a man she really cared about. They may not have known each other very well, but she could see that he was a man of his word. He had been nothing but honest with her. He showed her that he cared what she had to say, that he respected her opinion and decisions. Part of the reason she even had given him a chance in her life have been because of his honesty and respect.

"Mitchie, Shane, where are you?" Jason called from down the hall.

"Guest room," Shane called keeping his eyes on Mitchie.

"Hey guys, do you want to head out yet or are we gonna hang out here today?"

"Give Mitchie about an hour to pack up all her new stuff and then we'll be ready," Shane responded.

"Cool. I'm really excited to go see Camp Rock for more than a couple minutes. Nate had a plan the first time so we were pretty much in and out. I didn't even say hi to Brown, but it's all good. I'll go say hi today."

"What time is it?" Mitchie asked turning from the mirror and noting the incredibly early hour on the clock.

"Sorry, I thought you would want to spend a whole day at home rather than in travel. We'll fly early and sleep on the plane then we can spend the whole day in town," Shane explained.

"That explains the fact that I feel like I just went to bed. Hey, you changed my alarm clock to four in the morning!" Mitchie said, slightly aggravated by the time of day she had just woken up to.

"Sorry. I know we didn't go to bed until two but that's this time zone. Your time zone should be two in the morning so technically we went to bed at midnight," Shane reasoned.

"It's fine," Mitchie said, getting out of the bed and heading for her suitcase to find out what her mom had deemed acceptable travel clothing.

The boys left Mitchie to her packing and traveled down the stairs into the kitchen, careful not to wake anyone else.

"Did you make me pancakes too? Jason asked as he took a seat next to the island in the kitchen.

Shane rolled his eyes. Jason always asked for pancakes. On tour Jason had to stop for pancakes at least once every week. Jason was not ever picky compared to the way Shane had been, but he definitely demanded pancakes.

"Yes, Jason. I did make you pancakes."

"Yay!"

"Shhh keep your voice down or you'll wake Sarah and we'll never get out of here."

"Oh, come on Shane. You know she just wants to say goodbye to her brothers."

"Yea, but she takes at least an hour to say those goodbyes and with her becoming friends with Mitchie this weekend…"

"Oh yea, I guess. Girls do talk a lot…"

Just then they heard a rumble on the stairs.

_Ka-thunk, ka-thunk, ka-thunk._

"I think Mitchie's ready to go," Jason commented.

"Well, so much for pancakes. Let's get going before the sun is too high to sleep on the plane."

Shane grabbed a few HAPPY containers and packed the pancakes into them before heading to the door.

* * *

_Creeeeek._

Mitchie cracked the door to her house open followed closely by Shane and Jason. It was still early there and she didn't want to wake anyone. She motioned to the boys leading them passed a sleeping Nate and into the kitchen.

"Mitchie."

She jumped at the sound of her father's voice. She didn't think anyone would be up so early.

"Hi, daddy," she said turning around, "What are you doing up so early?"

"Church starts in an hour. I was just going to make some pancakes for your mom, Caitlyn and Nate, but I guess I'll be making some more," Mr. Torres joked, "Oh, this must be Shane. It's nice to meet Mitchie's boyfriend final," he said extending his hand

Mitchie looked from her father to Shane to Jason and back. She could not understand how her father would have figured that out. His face was pleasant and not harsh or anything. She looked back to Jason who, as usual, was staring out the window, probably looking for birds, and had totally neglected to hear what Mr. Torres had just said. Then to Shane whose shoulders had relaxed since seeing Mr. Torres smile.

"Nice to meet you too sir," Shane said taking it.

_What's going on? Why is dad ok with this? How does he even know?_

"I'm gonna go put my stuff upstairs," Mitchie excused herself, running up to the guest room to find Caitlyn, up and already mixing.

"Hey, you're back earlier than I expected," Caitlyn said, looking up from her computer.

"Shane wanted to spend today here. I didn't want to come back yet, but he wants to see my town now that I've seen his and he wanted to meet my dad. That was way easier than I thought though. Did you say anything to him? Anything about me and Shane."

Caitlyn gave a guilty smile.

"What did you say?" Mitchie asked, a little shocked that Caitlyn had said anything

"I didn't mean for it to slip in front of your parents. I was talking to Nate about plans for lunch today and I said that we should double with you and Shane. Your dad heard that and then he asked me to explain. Your family has been so good to me and I even see your mom as a better mom than mine. I didn't want to lie to him, so I told him that you and Shane were dating."

Caitlyn braced herself for Mitchie's reaction, but it never came. Instead she was pushed onto the bed by a massive hug.

"Thank you! You took so much stress off Shane and me. I think my dad might be ok with him being in my life! Since he's seen you and Nate together he probably figured friends act alike and that Shane would be the same as Nate. Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

Caitlyn lay on the bed, shocked. She had pictured Mitchie's reaction a dozen different times and never thought it would turn out this way. She had imagined losing Mitchie as a friend, a big blow out fight, being smacked, being kicked out of the house and so many other scenarios and the one Mitchie choose was the most unexpected.

"Mitchie, Caitlyn!" Connie called from downstairs, "Let's go. I have to go get Rachel, Barron, Sander and Abigail still."

Mitchie jumped up from the bed, realizing she looked like she had just woken up. She ran from Caitlyn's room into her own, shuffling through her clothing to find something to wear. Mitchie heard someone at the door and turn to see Shane holding her bags.

"I thought you might want these. Jason said you bought some dresses that you could use for church."

Mitchie smiled at Shane's thoughtfulness. If he was going to this thoughtful all the time, she was going to have a hard time falling harder for him. She grabbed the bags, saying a quick "thanks" and pushed him from the room, closing the door so she could change.

Five minutes later, she emerged from her room, face looking much less tired and dressed much more formally than she had been.

Shane, who had also changed into a nicer shirt and dress pants, was waiting for Mitchie at the bottom of the stairs. As she reached them he looked up and smiled. It was very rare that Mitchie would dress this formally and Shane had never seen her in anything clean cut like the red dress she was wearing now. He took in an audible breath. Mitchie giggled at Shane's reaction to her appearance as Jason, Caitlyn, and some guy that could have been Nate in another life came into view.

"Let's go everyone, we're already late picking up the kids from school," Mrs. Torres urged, pushing everyone out the door.

"Isn't Nate coming?" Mitchie asked, confused.

The guy that Mitchie didn't know laughed.

"Mitchie, it's me… Nate. Well, here I'm actually Tyler."

"I'm so confused," Mitchie said, following everyone out the door.

The short car ride to Camp Rock was spent explaining Nate's appearance to Mitchie.

Upon arrival to Camp Rock, Jason began jumping in his seat. He was so excited to be on the campus even if it was only for a couple minutes. He was also excited to see Abigail. Her golden locks had caught his eye on the last tour and he had constantly thought about them when Shane had talked about his ex or Mitchie had mentioned her roommates over the past few days. Something about stringy blonde hair attracted Jason, like the great outdoors. Perhaps he was reminded by the sun.

Connie stopped in front of Mitchie's cabin and picked up everyone.

"Hey, Shane; I thought you were in Malibu this weekend. I'm sorry to hear about the break up," Rachel gushed as she secured her seatbelt next to him.

Shane frowned in response.

"I'd rather not talk about it," he responded, "It's been a tough weekend for me."

Rachel gave him a one-armed hug for comfort. Shane looked at Mitchie giving her a look of awkwardness.

"So, what are you doing in Arkansas?" Sander asked Nate.

"Well, we came to visit you guys. I mean, we haven't been here since the school opened and I thought it would be fun to visit Brown and everyone here."

"So basically you came to see Caitlyn," Barron interjected.

Nate and Caitlyn began to blush for the second time that weekend.

"Look at that bird," Jason said pointing out the window at a bluebird.

Abigail looked to see what Jason was talking about. She remembered Jason's obsession with birds and thought that it was cool how into nature he was.

"Jason I don't see it," Abigail said from the back of the van.

"That's because we passed it," Jason said, turning around in the seat to explain why she couldn't see it anymore, "You can't see something after you pass it silly. That's just common sense."

Abigail began to laugh. Of course Jason was right, but she had not meant it the way Jason had thought she did.

As Connie pulled into the parking lot, Shane, and Jason pulled out their disguises. Both had decided to go with blonde wigs. Everyone admitted that they really could not pull it off in real life, but no one would know the difference if they had never met the boys before.

"Mitchie, Caitlyn, Abby!" Lea said, coming up to great them as they reached the door.

Lea was the most excepting of the Camp Rockers. She seemed genuinely happy to see them every week.

"Who are your friends?" Lea indicated to the boys.

"This is Tyler," Caitlyn said of Nate, "He's Mitchie's cousin. And these are old family friends of mine," she indicated Shane and Jason, "Ron and Neville."

Shane, Jason, and Mitchie gave Caitlyn funny looks.

"Hey you guys share names with Harry Potter characters," Lea commented.

"Ha-ha… That's kind of funny," Shane said, rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably.

"Hey Lea, Mrs. Dodat wants you inside for the worship set," Tomas said, appearing around the door, "Oh hey Mitchie, Abby."

_Why did he say hi to them and not to Sander and Barron? Why did he smile at Mitchie?_

Shane's brow furrowed as the group entered the church. He was not particularly happy with Mitchie getting greeted by boys. If something was going on between Mitchie and Tomas, he was going to be really upset with her.

* * *

**So? How was that?**


	40. Shock

**Hey guys, long time no see. Sorry, I've been really busy lately with school. Life should slow down soon so these updates will be more frequent, but for now this is what I have. I hope you like it.**

* * *

**LAST TIME**

"Hey Lea, Mrs. Dodat wants you inside for the worship set," Tomas said, appearing around the door, "Oh hey Mitchie, Abby."

_Why did he say hi to them and not to Sander and Barron? Why did he smile at Mitchie?_

Shane's brow furrowed as the group entered the church. He was not particularly happy with Mitchie getting greeted by boys. If something was going on between Mitchie and Tomas, he was going to be really upset with her.

* * *

**NOW**

"Good Morning, please turn in your Bibles to Acts chapter 26. We are going to be looking at the story of Paul."

Mitchie felt something fall into her lap. _Ooh a note from Abby. What could this be about?_

_M-_

_Tom keeps looking over here…I think he might like you._

_-A_

Mitchie wrote back quickly, hoping that Shane wouldn't see what was written. He had gotten super protective when Tomas had said hello.

_A-_

_No. That's not possible. I'm with Shane anyway. Tom's nice, but not for me. Besides, he's looking at you. He really likes you! Not me._

_-M_

She threw the paper back to Abigail, pulling out her Bible and turning to the passage for the lesson. Shane tossed Mitchie a note.

_M-_

_So what's the deal with this Tomas guy? He seemed pretty taken with you. You don't like him do you?_

_-S_

Mitchie shook her head. _Why does everyone say that Tom likes me? It's not TRUE!_

_S-_

_No there's nothing going on. I love you, not him…Besides, he's just a friend who lives in town. We've never even hung out together._

_-M_

Mitchie smiled at him as she passed the note back.

Despite Mitchie's reassurance, Shane did not seem very settled seeing Tomas looking towards Mitchie. Abigail did not help Mitchie's cause very much. She was constantly whispering to Caitlyn or passing notes to Mitchie concerning Tomas.

When the service ended the group headed to Sunday school, as usual, with Shane, Nate and Jason in toe. As they walked by Lea approached them and wanted to introduce them to the other teens in the church. Tomas was not among them and Mitchie saw Shane visibly relax.

Jason leaned towards Mitchie when the introductions ended saying, "Sarah kind of scares me. What's her deal?"

Mitchie laughed before explaining, "I think you're supposed to be scared of her. Everyone I've talked to says she's a little full of herself."

As the group continued down the hall they came across Tomas again and Shane gripped Mitchie's hand a little too tightly.

"Ouch, Sh-Ron calm down. I'm not going anywhere," Mitchie said, giving Shane a peck on the cheek when no one was looking.

After Sunday school ended, Shane grabbed Mitchie's hand and wouldn't let go. Mitchie was positive it still had something to do with Tomas, but she knew Shane wouldn't believe her unless she had proof that Tomas did not like her.

_This is nice. I never thought that a guy would be this possessive of me. It's sweet how insecure he is about losing me. I'm going to have to talk to him about that later…Really, am I going to give up Shane for a guy just because he lives closer to me? That would be ridiculous. I'm not going to give up on a relationship just because it's convenient._

As the couple was leaving the room, Mitchie heard Tomas call out to Abigail. She froze in place.

"Abigail, what are you doing next weekend?"

Abigail looked to Mitchie for guidance. Mitchie nodded in support, trying to tell Abigail that she could hang out with Tomas.

"I'm not doing anything that I'm aware of. Why do you ask?"

"Well, see, I know it's short notice, but…well, the homecoming dance at my school is next Saturday and I was wondering if you would go with me."

Shane's grip slacked a little after what Tomas had just said, but remained loosely holding Mitchie's.

"Oh…wow…yea, sure I would love to go with you."

"Great, here's my number. Call me when you get a chance this week and we can go over details. Adam and Lea are going in our group too. I hope that makes you more comfortable going to a school dance with a bunch of strangers."

"Ok. Yea, that sounds good."

"Hey guys, Connie wants to go," Rachel said appearing at the door.

Mitchie and Shane's hands separated as Rachel walked back down the hall towards the exit. Abby grabbed the slip of paper from Tomas and said goodbye before leading the Camp Rock crew to the exit.

"See," Mitchie said, stepping out into the cool air of November, "he didn't like me all along. Tom's liked Abby since the beginning of the year."

"Ok. Fine. I guess I was wrong, but you can't blame me. You are more attractive than I am, Mitchie," Abby replied.

"I am not. You have really pretty blonde hair and the perfect body, I'm just average. Right Shane?"

Shane opened his mouth to speak before receiving a very hard pat on the shoulder from Jason.

"Bad idea," Jason whispered to him, "that's just asking for trouble."

Shane closed his mouth believing that Jason was probably right this time and it would be better to keep his opinions to himself. He just shrugged his shoulders and headed quickly to Connie's van without saying a word.

"What are you guys talking about?" Rachel asked, having missed the date proposal.

"I'm going to a dance with Tom in town next Saturday," Abby practically screamed.

"What are you going to wear? Can I take you dress shopping? I can find the perfect dress so easily. Please!"

Abby laughed before agreeing to Rachel's pleading.

Once on the road, Shane and Jason took off their wigs and the discussion turned to something Rachel said she had heard in the girl's bathroom at the church. She said that Sarah thought that Connect 3 was a very girly band and that Shane, Nate and Jason couldn't sing at all.

Mitchie started laughing much to everyone else's confusion.

"I'm sorry. It's just that when Sierra was in town Sarah was blabbing that she was getting Connect 3 tickets in London over Christmas. She must have found out that wasn't possible. No, she definitely is a fan. She was saying that to Lea and you should have seen how jealous Lea got…I think I have an idea…"

An hour later, the group sat around the large dining room table for lunch. Now they were accompanied by a very star struck Lea. Nate had washed his hair and now looked like the Nate the media portrayed him as.

"So Lea, what do you like to do for fun?" Jason asked.

"Oh, I'm a fairly simple girl. I like to go bowling or roller skating with friends. I'm also a pianist and I play the flute in the orchestra at my school."

"That's cool. How long have you been playing the piano?" Nate asked with interest.

"For about eleven years, but I'm not that good…School kind of gets in the way of lessons and any other funny things I would do with my free time."

"I know what you mean. I tried to take up violin when I was younger, but I just couldn't find time to practice with dance classes," Caitlyn sympathized.

"Music was my biggest dream so I did really bad in school," Rachel added, "I'm sure if school was more important to me, then my grades would have been better, but I was determined to become a famous country star."

Lea beamed. It was evident that she had never been in a room with famous people.

_Ding dong. Ding dong._

"Mitchie, I think it's for you," Connie said, "the executive is supposed to come by today."

"Oh right… um…I guess I'll be right back."

Mitchie got up and headed to the door, quickly followed by Shane and Caitlyn.

"Mitchie, what's going on?" Caitlyn asked, stopping Mitchie short of the door.

"I can't believe I didn't tell you. I guess I was still so in shock that it didn't occur to tell you. You had big news this weekend from Lava Records. Well, I got some pretty exciting news too. Come and meet the executive with me," Mitchie said grabbing Caitlyn's hand.

The three reached to door where Mitchie opened it to see Brown standing there.

"Brown, what's up? Is something wrong at the school?" Mitchie asked, surprised to see her principle.

"I'm not here on school business, love; I'm here on music business."

Mitchie looked from Brown to Shane to Caitlyn back to Brown. Her face never strayed from its furrowed brow and turned down lip appearance.

"Mitchie, I own Lava Records. The executives you've spoken with work for me. May I come in? There is a lot to discuss and now I'm sure you have a lot of questions."

Mitchie stepped aside allowing Brown to enter the house and lead him to the lounge. He took a seat on a lounge chair for the second time that weekend. Mitchie, Shane and Caitlyn followed, sitting down together on the couch.

"Shane, would you mind getting Mr. Torres for me please? Connie already knows about this, but I think Mitchie's father should be here for the rest of the paperwork."

While Shane left the room, Brown began to explain arrangements for Mitchie's success.

"Now Mitchie, before we can start recording your album-" Brown started.

"Oh, my gosh…Mitchie's going to be a new artist for Lava Records!" Caitlyn exclaimed, just learning this new information.

"Yes Caitlyn. Now, what we are going to do is start small. As you are already preparing, you will be in the Thanksgiving parade next week. I was thinking that the song you sing there we could release as a single and play over the radio to get your name out there. Of course this will be with the permission of your parents and I want to allow you as much creative control as possible. What do you think about that?"

Mitchie sat there staring at her hands, trying to digest all the information she had just heard. Caitlyn, equally shocked just kept blinking until Shane arrived with Mr. Torres behind him.

Mr. Torres shook Brown's hand before taking a seat in the other armchair. The room was quiet except for the sounds of Lea's laugher coming from the dining room. Everyone present waited for Brown to speak.

"Steve, what I was just explaining to Mitchie and Caitlyn was that after Thanksgiving we will release Mitchie's first single to radio and to sales. I know the sales will go fantastically and that Mitchie will rise to the occasion with grace. After that I was planning on having my intern help me produce the rest of Mitchie's first CD. The whole process from appearances to CD release will take about a year and a half. I'm looking into a couple other appearances for Mitchie, but I don't want to get ahead of myself.

"First order of business is the contract. Mitchie is still a minor and as such, she will need a parent or a trusted handler with her anytime she has to travel. Also, part of a record label is that there are employees that still need to be paid and while I would love to give Mitchie all the money that her music makes because I think her voice really does deserve it, I have to pay my staff. So we need to discuss how much Mitchie will make in royalties on her music."

"Whoa, I'm going to get paid for doing what I went to boarding school for? I totally didn't even think about that," Mitchie interrupted.

"That's right Ms. Torres. You are going to get paid for doing what you love, and the pay check is not going to be very small either. I was thinking about seventy-six percent of all sales of music. If Mitchie has any type of merchandise when she becomes a household name she will be paid about twenty-two percent; that is more than most musicians make on their face. Television appearances and interviews will depend on the amount of money we get for the interview and travel costs. Concerts will be about seventy percent of the profit directly to Mitchie's bank account. If she is opening for someone she will make significantly less than seventy percent of the profit. It will be more like twenty percent of the profit, but Mitchie will still be making more than she would if she became any type of music professional outside of rock music."

Steve's eyes were wide. It was as if he did not know where to start with what he had just heard. The idea of his daughter making more money on singing than he could ever make with his two hardware stores was mind blowing. He dreamed that his baby girl would be successful, but he could never have dreamed this big.

"Dad, you still in there?" Mitchie asked after being snapped out of her own shocked gaze into her palms by Shane.

Mr. Torres shook his head, "Yea, I'm still here. Sorry, it's just a lot of news for a father to take in. Everything you said is agreeable, but that part about Mitchie needing a trusted person with her at all times, I'm not sure Connie and I can always fly half way across the country with Mitchie. I run two stores and one of them I'm running from afar."

_What is going to happen if mom and dad can't travel with me? Will I lose this deal? I really want to do this…but I guess if I've waited this long, I can wait until I'm an adult…_

"That is completely understandable, Steve. I know if I wasn't Shane's uncle his mother would have struggle with that as well, but is there any family friends that could work as her handler? Do you have a sister or brother that could travel with her?"

Steve began to shake his head, but stopped short.

_What is he thinking? Oh please tell me he's figured out the same person I have. It would be so amazing if he picked her. It would even solve all the problems for Sierra. She could move down here and go to school with Lea so that Kayla could be here for me._

"Well, my wife's best friend lives about three hours away from here, but she might quit her job at the bakery if it meant helping Mitchie. Connie," he called, getting to his feet to ask her about this person.

Mrs. Torres quickly entered the room.

_Is daddy thinking of the same person I am?_

"Yea Steve?"

"Mr. Cesario was just telling me that Mitchie will need a handler to travel with her everywhere. I know that with you working at the school and me working at the hardware store we might not be able to travel with her all the time."

"Oh, I already called someone about that. They'll be moving down here at the end of the first semester of school. She just wants her daughter to finish up with the grades she has before moving from Hornsby to here."

_Is mom thinking Kayla? What about Robbie? Is he going to travel to go to church every weekend?_

"I'm glad we're on the same page. I was thinking her too."

"So it's settled then. All that I need you to do now is sign these papers. Sign here, here, here, here, here and…here," Brown said, pointing to every place Steve needed to place his John Hancock.

"Mitchie, Shane, Caitlyn, you three can go back to lunch. There's something I would like to show Brown before he heads back to the camp."

Mitchie, Caitlyn and Shane got to their feet and left the room.

_What could dad want to show Brown that I can't see? It's so obvious that Caitlyn and Shane would tell me so that's why they can't stay._

**So? What did you think? I want full feed back. I know it was short, but a lot happened so please don't judge by length. I've decided that I don't care about Camp Rock 2's plot in this story. I liked Nate and Caitlyn, so until the next summer comes up in the story, Caitlyn and Nate are going to stay together. Maybe there will be some sort of falling out at some point there, but we'll see. Please review, Lacey**


	41. Pressure

**LAST TIME**

"Mitchie, Shane, Caitlyn, you three can go back to lunch. There's something I would like to show Brown before he heads back to the camp."

Mitchie, Caitlyn and Shane got to their feet and left the room.

_What could dad want to show Brown that I can't see? It's so obvious that Caitlyn and Shane would tell me so that's why they can't stay._

* * *

**NOW**

When the three re-entered the dining room to see Jason with two olives up to his eyes making Lea laugh hysterically. Mitchie shot him a look between amusement and disapproval. Jason understood what she meant and put the olives back into his salad. Caitlyn took her seat next to Nate and rejoined the conversation at the table while Mitchie grabbed Shane's hand and pulled him through the door off the dining room, into the kitchen.

"What's wrong Mitchie? Are you ok?" Shane asked furrowing his brow, worry in his coffee colored eyes and holding both her hands while looking into her own chocolaty eyes.

Mitchie sighed and looked down, not wanting Shane to see the sadness in her eyes. She really was grateful for everything that was happening, but it was a little overwhelming. The fast pace the course of her life had taken in the last four months made it difficult for Mitchie to deal with anything. A tear escaped her eyes and landed on the floor between her and Shane's entangled hands.

This tear and the sniffle that followed did not go unnoticed by Shane. He took his hand and lifted her chin.

"Hey," he softly whispered, "it's ok to be scared. I know this is a lot to take right now, but you'll get through it. Life is going to change, for the both of us, but it's for the better. I've been talking to Nate about all the pressure you have been under in the last couple months and I know you were finally getting to feel like life had a rhythm. You know that the last couple months have been a little different…ok a lot different than you're used to, but you're not alone. I'm here for you, your parents are here for you, Caitlyn and Brown will be with you every step of the way. Nate, Jason and I aren't going anywhere. Well, we are going to keep going on our tour, but that's not what I mean…I mean-"

Mitchie looked up, and put her vacant hand up to his lips.

"Thank you," she whispered before leaning into him for a strong hug.

* * *

"So what did you think?" Mr. Torres asked Brown and Mrs. Torres.

"Wow Steve, you really out did yourself down there. I know that was your plan but it's so amazing."

"I really think that it's perfect. There are a couple things you need to add for finishing touches but I'll send you what you need for free. Not to worry, I don't plan to take her too far from home. That will be just perfect for a busy pop star."

Steve smiled at the positivity of both Connie and Brown.

_You can take these presents underneath my tree, you can take this awesome scarf my grandma made for me, you can take these boxes tied up with string, cause all I want for Christmas is the girl of my dreams._

"Excuse me. That must mean that I have been away from camp too long. I must be getting back to the students. It's been a pleasure talking with you and I'm horribly excited to get to work on Mitchie's album. Connie I'll see you at school tonight, and Steve I'll see you at Thanksgiving," Brown said quickly, shaking their hands and pulling out his cell phone as he walked out the door.

* * *

"Mom, I'm home!" Sierra shouted as she entered the darkened house, "Mom, you home? Dad? Is anyone here? I know I was gone for a couple hours but this is kinda freaking me out."

Sierra headed to the kitchen where there was a note waiting.

_Sierra-_

_I had to take a quick trip out of town for business. I'll be home tomorrow and then I can explain. Your father is in the basement if you need him. He's been working really hard on his sermon for Thanksgiving so try to keep out of his way. There's a pizza in the freezer for the two of you tonight. Your principle called and said that your "teacher" will be over at 7am tomorrow so be up and ready for school._

_See you tomorrow night. Love,_

_Mom_

Sierra read the letter and then tossed it aside. It was quite unusual for her mother to be making business trips this time of year, but she thought that there may have been a wedding farther away that her mother had to deliver a cake to. Pizza was always her mother's go to food when she was out of town simply because her father could not cook at all.

Sierra popped the pizza in the oven and then ventured to find a movie to keep her busy that night. She thought about calling Mitchie, but decided against it since she knew that Shane was in town.

* * *

As soon as lunch was finished and Lea had gone home, all the Camp Rock students and all of Connect 3 piled into Connie's van and headed back to Camp Rock High. The bus was only a couple minutes away when Rachel asked, "Hey Mitchie, who was at the door?"

"Oh, you'll never guess. It was Brown. You know Lava Records? Well, he owns it and he signed me!"

Everyone erupted into cheers of excitement before seeing the Camp Rock sign. Then they quickly changed their cheers into the singing of the Camp Rock song for the remaining car ride into the camp.

Once the van had stopped moving, everyone swiftly filed out and went their separate ways except of course Connect 3. They headed directly to Brown's office to find out if they could put on a quick show.

_I love coming here. I hope we get to perform for the campers. That song for Christmas is going to be a big hit. Especially because I get to sing it to the one I wrote it about. I might be wrong but I swear I heard it right before Brown left Mitchie's house today._

"Hello boys," Brown said, seeing his favorite clients enter his office.

"Hey Brown," Nate responded giving him a hug.

"What can I do for you today? I already made some dreams come true because of the fabulous displays of talent shown over the summer. So what more can I do?"

"Well," Shane relied, "It's actually something we would like to do for your students. We've been talking about it, and we want to play a small concert for them tonight before we leave town. It would kind of be a sneak peak of our next album and it would also give us a test run of some songs that we were thinking about adding to the playlist."

"Why, I think that's a fabulous idea. We can get everyone together right after dinner and make that happen. Now that you mention it, I think it would be cool to start having little talent shows more frequently. Perhaps this will be the start of a weekly tradition, but after the holidays we can showcase the students' talent."

Shane, Jason and Nate nodded in agreement. It was simply splendid to ponder that they had started something for the students' entertainment and practice. The four began to put together a playlist of songs that they wanted to perform when there was a knock at the door.

"Sorry, to interrupt, but Connie told me that this was Mr. Cesario's office. I'm Kayla, Connie and Steve's close friend."

"Ah, yes. Boys, why don't you head to the Final Jam stage and I'll be along in a little while."

The trio nodded and made their exit quickly.

"Kayla, I understand that you are interested in becoming Mitchie's handler for the next several years. Is this a correct assumption?"

"Of course, Mitchie's been like a daughter to me since she was a little girl. My daughter and she were inseparable growing up. I always have Mitchie's best interest at heart. I know Mitchie very well and her parents and I will be in constant contact if you let me take this job."

Brown looked at her for a long time, thinking about if she was the right fit for Mitchie's needs or not.

"There's just one thing you mentioned that I am a little concerned about. Your daughter is a friend of Mitchie's. There may be times where you and Mitchie need to travel and as much as I would love to have your daughter along for the ride, she may not be able to join the two of you. Likewise Mitchie may need you to travel with her when your daughter's schedule is important. If that happens you may need to choose between your daughter and her best friend."

"Mr. Cesario-"

"Please, call me Brown."

"Um…ok, Brown. I know what I'm getting myself into and I know that this is a big year for my daughter's growth, but I promise you that I can take this job with the blessing of both my husband and my daughter. Currently my husband and I are in talks about moving my daughter's education home because of the way certain people have been treating her at school just because of Mitchie's appearance in a music video. I am not against moving closer to the Torres family if need be as well."

"Right now you would be able to remain in your current location as long as you could make monthly meetings and allow me to contact you weekly as to what Mitchie's schedule that would involve you would be. Sometimes that would mean meeting her here; other times that would mean that you would meet her at her destination. I may be able to travel with her occasionally, but I cannot be held responsible as her handler because of my position in the music world. It is wonderful to hear that you have already discussed this with your family and I think that you seem very qualified for the job."

"Thank you Brown," Kayla said, getting to her feet.

"It's a pleasure. Now if you would just give me your e-mail address and your cell phone number, you can be on your way, unless, of course, you would like to see Mitchie and tell her the good news."

* * *

Mitchie reached her cabin just as Alicia opened the door to leave.

"Hey Mitchie, how are you? You were a little distressed when the weekend started. I came back from classes and Abby said that everyone was gone and your computer was gone so guessed that you left for the weekend. I had a couple questions on my math homework that I was wondering if you could help me with, that is… if you're up to it."

"Yea sure," Mitchie replied with a smile. I'd love to help you with your homework. This weekend was fantastic and everything is going to be just fine."

Alicia was shocked at this response. The Mitchie that had left only a couple days pervious was not the one who came back. This Mitchie was down-right perky and seemed to have something more than even before Alicia had met her.

Mitchie bounded past Alicia and into the cabin. She quickly put away her computer and began to empty out her suitcase of the shopping she had done in Malibu.

"Wow, that's a lot of new clothes. Where did you get it all?" Alicia said, following Mitchie into the cabin instead of going out to find Abigail.

"Nate lent me his credit card and his sister took me shopping. It was a total surprise. Nate forced me to go on vacation with Jason. He pushed me into a car and we got to the airport. Then we were getting on a plane to who knows where and then getting off a plane, into a limo and driving to Malibu. It was the weirdest most awesome experience ever."

"So what did you do in Malibu? Did you just walk the beach, sunbathe and shop?"

"Actually, Jason went and found Shane. Apparently, Nate had a whole plan to surprise Shane with me and vice versa. He didn't even tell Jason what was going on until he had to know. Jason had every intent on taking me bowling and keeping my mind off Shane, but when the limo pulled up to a jet, I'm sure he realized that wasn't Nate's plan."

"Oh, I love Nate. He's such a sweet guy. I really wish I had taken my opportunity when I could. I really messed that up. It's a good thing that I got over him."

"Yea he's- wait…what?"

"Nate and I almost were."

"No way. You and Nate?"

"Yea, we were really close a couple years ago and he asked me out, but because of Sarah I said no."

"Wow, and you're sure you're over him?"

"Yea, I mean, it's not like if he asked me out I would have said no but I'm happy he's with Caitlyn and I think that's part of the reason I was able to get over him. He raved about her talent that week when he got home from camp. It was either you or Caitlyn any time he talked when I was over there with Sarah and even when we weren't in the room I could hear Shane groan about how much time Nate would spend talking about some curly haired brunette he had seen at the Final Jam."

Just then Caitlyn came in with her bag.

"Hey Alicia, did Mitchie tell you the amazing, fantastic news?"

"Yea, that she got to go all the way to California for a weekend and that you have the best boyfriend ever."

Caitlyn looked confused for a second and then said, "Yes, that's true, but it's not what I was talking about."

"Well, Caitlyn, why don't you tell her your good news. I didn't want to burst your bubble. My news is not fully functioning yet. It all depends on if my parents can find time to take off."

Alicia looked from Caitlyn to Mitchie and back again.

"I got an internship with Lava Records!" Caitlyn gushed, "And the best part is that I get to work on Mitchie's music."

"That's remarkable," Alicia enthused.

"And there's more," Caitlyn started, but she was interrupted with a knock at the cabin door.

Alicia went to the door to see who it could be. Friends never knocked, they opened the door with a knock. It was actually quite odd that someone would knock at the door.

"Hi, can we help you?" Alicia asked the woman at the door.

"Yea, I'm looking for Mitchie Torres, but I probably have the wrong cabin."

"No, you've got the right cabin," Alicia said, turning into the cabin and motioning for Mitchie.

"Kayla! What are you doing here? Did you bring Sierra with you?" Mitchie said, giving the woman at the door a hug and inviting her in.

"Sierra is at home. She was visiting John when I got the call. Did Mr. Cesario tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

"I'm going to be your handler! Everything is worked out; I just left the meeting in his office."

"Oh my gosh," Mitchie said, giving Kayla another hug, "Thank you so much for taking the job! I thought Mom and Dad were talking about you, but of course I couldn't be sure. This is so great…but…what about Sierra?"

"Robbie and I have been talking with her…she's almost done with all her high school requirements, in fact if she really wanted she could graduate in January and still have the valedictorian status for high school. She actually just won a scholarship for a fashion show she was in with Lilac. She was thinking about starting college in the spring semester. It would just be community college, but she would get her prerequisite classes out of the way for med school."

Mitchie's face fell.

_Sierra's graduating early? I thought she wanted the whole senior experience. She's graduating a year and a half before she really needs to. Is this all because of the taunting at school or is there more?_


	42. McDonalds? Really?

**Happy New Year and Merry Christmas. Ok so it might be a little late for both of those, but I'm happy to report that the next chapter should be about Thanksgiving =). Please enjoy and don't forget to leave a comment below, Lacey**

* * *

LAST TIME

"Robbie and I have been talking with her…she's almost done with all her high school requirements, in fact if she really wanted she could graduate in January and still have the valedictorian status for high school. She actually just won a scholarship for a fashion show she was in with Lilac. She was thinking about starting college in the spring semester. It would just be community college, but she would get her prerequisite classes out of the way for med school."

Mitchie's face fell.

_Sierra's graduating early? I thought she wanted the whole senior experience. She's graduating a year and a half before she really needs to. Is this all because of the taunting at school or is there more?_

* * *

NOW

The following week passed by at a rate that Mitchie could never have expected and before she knew it she was on a plane headed to New York for the first time in her life. She sat with her notebook in her lap thinking about everything she was going through.

_I'm about to sing in the Marcy's Thanksgiving Day Parade with all of the United States watching, I have a record deal, my parents and friends are flying half way across the country to make all my dreams come true and my best friend wants to leave high school a year and a half early. What the heck am I doing? I never wanted to see this affect my family and friends this much. Will Sierra resent me for making her life miserable in a couple years? I did kind of ruin her high school experience by bringing her into my life that involved Shane. She never wanted the questioning or the celebrity treatment; she doesn't like it either. She needed me even though she said she didn't and I left her to go sing. Is that selfish? Stop it Mitchie! This is ridiculous of course Sierra won't resent you. No one knew that life was going to turn out this way. Not Mom, not you, not Shane, not even Brown saw this way of life coming so stop being so critical of yourself. You are the same person you have always been and no one can change that. Hmm… that's a good song concept… __I am confident, but I still have my moments. Baby, that's just me…_

Mitchie continued to ponder these lyrics allowing her mind drift away from the concerns that gashed into her like a knife.

Shortly after beginning this song Mitchie fell asleep only to be woken only what felt like moments later by her mother.

"Mitchie, honey," Connie whispered as she shook her daughter back into consciousness, "We're here. It's time to get up."

Mitchie sat up groggily and collected her notebook and pen from their spot on the floor where they had been discarded in her attempt to get a more comfortable in her sleep. Looking down at her watch she followed her mother out of the front of the plane and into the busy airport.

_Hmm…five thirty…no wonder I'm hungry._

Connie quickly spotted a man holding a sign sporting "Torres" only a short distance away. She grabbed Mitchie's hand and led her to the man. This man introduced himself as Miles, the driver of the Torres family during their stay in New York City. This, Mitchie found odd. She had never had a driver to take her from place to place and whenever her parents had ever traveled before they had had their own mode of transportation whether it was a taxi in Chicago or a rental car in Florida.

After collecting their luggage and making their way through the airport, Miles led the way to the limo asking where the family would like to venture first. As the parade would not take place until the next day, Mitchie was not overly eager to get to the hotel.

"Can we stop to eat before heading to the hotel?" Mitchie asked Miles.

"You're the boss Miss Torres. Where would you like to eat?"

"McDonalds," Mitchie said automatically.

It was very rare that she would visit McDonalds since she had left for school. In fact, she could not remember going out for fast food since she moved in at school.

Miles laughed a little. He rarely drove a large limo through a McDonalds drive through. Generally, he dropped celebrities off at nice sit-down restaurants when they came to the Big Apple.

"Ok Miss Torres. If you want McDonalds, we'll get you McDonalds."

'_Everything is different, why do things change? I'm still standing here, but you've walked away. Everything is nothing now that I see, everything we are is everything we're gonna be.'_

Mitchie quickly reached into her purse and extracted her cell phone.

"Hey!"

_Hey Mitchie, did you get into New York ok?_

"Yeah, we did and thank you for the car by the way. I was not expecting that."

_I thought you might like that. So how was school? I can't believe Brown made you go despite what tomorrow is._

"It was good. I didn't get any homework; so, that means I have time to hang around everyone this weekend."

_Where are you now, on the way to the hotel?_

"Nope, I'm hungry…I told the driver to stop by McDonalds on the way to the hotel. Then we'll probably head there. Where are you?"

_McDonalds? Really Mitchie? You could go anywhere and you choose McDonalds? Well, Nate and I are chillin' at Starcash right now._

"Hey, I'm no supermodel. There's nothing wrong with eating McDonalds occasionally. Besides, I'm really craving grease filled fries. Coffee, this late? Do you plan on sleeping at all tonight?"

* * *

Shane laughed, "No, I guess not. It was Nate's idea. He thought that the caffeine might calm my nerves. I guess, he thought if I chewed another piece of gum my teeth might fall out, but now that you've mentioned it, I probably should switch to something with less caffeine."

Nate rolled his eyes. Of course it had been his idea to go to the coffee shop, but it had nothing to do with actually drinking coffee. He had seen Shane chomping at the bit to get a call from Mitchie and thought that rather than let him chew a whole pack of gum in an hour, he would bring him along to get something to drink. Nate, himself, had only gotten a hot mug of herbal tea. His throat had been bugging him and he thought it would be a good way to prepare it for the parade the next day.

'_I'm falling even more in love with you, letting go of all I've held onto. I'm standing here until you make me move. I'm hanging by a moment here with you.'_

Nate picked up his phone and smiled before answering.

"Hey you, how's the weather down south?"

_Too hot! I can't believe my parents actually wanted to host Thanksgiving this year. Last year we went to the Caiman Islands for the holidays and the year before that they came to New York and we stayed in a hotel only about an hour from boarding school. My cousins are getting really annoying and I've only been home for five minutes. Apparently, they both are bringing their boyfriends to Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow night. I know you're busy and we'll see each other over my winter break, but it's hard to have them brag about their boyfriends and their fake perfection when I have the coolest, most amazing boyfriend ever and I can't even tell them._

"Why can't you tell them?" Nate asked, interrupting Caitlyn's rant.

_Well if I did then they would bug me about an autograph and all the stuff that goes with it. They already know that I know Shane because of my camp pictures…Thank you Mom for letting them in my room before I could put that away…_

Nate chucked, "Poor you. I'm sorry that this is so hard on you. You know I would be there if I could, but we have to do the parade tomorrow."

Nate coughed hard causing the throbbing that he had extinguished with his tea to come back.

_Ooh that didn't sound good, are you ok?_

"Yea, I just have a little cold that's all. I should be back to normal tomorrow. You're going to watch the parade right?"

_You really think I would miss it? I mean, you and Mitchie are going to be in it. That would be really insane if I missed it. Are you sure you're ok though? That cough was pretty bad for just a cold._

"Caitlyn, really, I'm fine. I'll just rest my voice tonight and tomorrow I should be as good as new."

_Ok, well, Mitchie my cousin just came in to tell me that I need to go for dinner. So, I'm glad you had a good flight and I'll talk to you later._

* * *

_Ok call me tomorrow after dinner. I want to hear how it went. You should at least tell them you're taken._

"Ok, I'll think about it," Caitlyn said into the phone.

_Love you, bye._

"You too, bye."

Caitlyn smiled, both happy and worried. Nate had just said he loved her for the first time. No, it wasn't romantic or anything fancy, but that is what Caitlyn wanted. She did not have a hopeless romantic complex like Mitchie did.

"Caitlyn, come on!" Allie, Caitlyn's cousin urged, bringing her out of her thoughts.

_What did she hear?_

Caitlyn followed her cousin out of her room hearing the sounds of chairs scraping the floor in the dining room.

"So how's school going Caitlyn?" Allie asked, as the family settled into their pre-Thanksgiving dinner.

"It's going great; I'm actually doing really well in all my arts classes," Caitlyn replied with a smile, grateful that Allie was not asking about the phone call.

"Are there any cute guys there or are they all lame music nerds?"

Caitlyn put down the fork she was about to put into her mouth, caught off guard by this question.

_Well, there are some cute guys on campus…she doesn't need to know if my boyfriend goes there or not. He could just be a kid from town._

"I met a guy there and we hit it off really well; we've been together for about a month now."

"That's awesome. Can you give me some deets?"

Caitlyn sighed, she knew this was coming when she had been honest with Allie, but she thought she would have more time to come up with a story. She knew Allie was not really trying to pry, but with every question Allie asked it seemed that Caitlyn was getting closer and closer to her secret.

"He's a triple-threat type. He plays guitar and drums, but he can sing and he has an amazing talent for writing too."

"Wow, sounds like an over achiever to me," Payton, Caitlyn's other cousin, commented from her seat on the other side of Allie.

"I guess you could call him that. He's a senior, but he's my age," Caitlyn commented.

"An over achiever and a nerd, sounds perfect for you Caity," Payton commented.

"So what's Mr. Over Achiever's name?"

Caitlyn thought fast trying to remember what name she had told the people in town when she had stayed at the Torres house.

"Um…Tyler, yep that's his name. You're right Payton he's a total nerd, but he's really sweet and thoughtful."

* * *

Crunch. Crunch.

_Mmmm…Oh how I have missed my beautiful McDonalds fries…They're just cheap enough to taste this good. I wonder how Caitlyn is doing… She seemed a little worried to get on that bus earlier. I'll call her tonight…_

Miles stopped the car in front of what looked like a very expensive hotel.

"We're here," his voice resonated over a speaker.

The door to Mitchie's right opened and a hand appeared, helping Mitchie out of the limo and taking her into his arms.

There, in that moment, all of Mitchie's worries seemed to disappear. These strong arms blocked out all the problems she was going through in her life. The hand now stroking her hair was pulling out all the doubt about Sierra's family situation. Smelling the think scent of cologne evaporated all the worries about the parade and the crowd reaction. There, in that moment, everything was perfect.

"Hey you," his voice whispered in her ear.

"Hey," she said back, through her chattering teeth.

It had gotten quite cold as the sun had disappeared beyond the horizon. Small flakes of snow were falling from the sky as Mitchie looked up into those beautiful brown eyes and saw the flecks of white stick to his perfectly straitened locks.

"Mitchie" a voice called from nearby, "you're finally here!"

Mitchie looked passed Shane to see Nate and Sarah standing at the door with smiles on their faces.

"Hey guys!" Mitchie greeted them with a smile.

_This is going to be a wonderful Thanksgiving,_ Mitchie thought as Shane took her bags from Miles, _just wonderful._

* * *

The moment that Shane had been waiting for had finally come. Mitchie was there, in the same hotel as him, to spend Thanksgiving with his entire family. In that realization Shane realized something else, something that slightly worried him.

_What is Mom going to say about Mitchie? Nate's parents liked her, but that's not Mom. Relax, Shane, Mom is going to love her because you love her and you are back to being yourself because of her._

Shane led Mitchie through the door, passing her bags off to a bell hop and leading her towards the elevator.

_Better to do this now than later._

"Shane, where are we going?"

"Shh," he whispered, "Not everyone in the building knows I'm here and I'd like to keep it that way."  
"But where are we going?" Mitchie asked again in a hushed tone.

Getting into the empty elevator, Shane wrapped his arms around her once more.

"I want you to meet someone really important to me. She's the reason I work so hard at what I love so much."

Shane could feel Mitchie suddenly tense.

"Your mom?" Mitchie asked, biting her lip.

"Of course I want you to meet my mom. I want her to meet you more importantly."

Shane began to sing to Mitchie softly as the elevator glided up to the top floor of the building.

_Every time I think I'm closer to the heart… of what it means to know just who I am… I think I finally found a better place to start. No one ever seems to understand…I need to try to get to where you are. Could it be you're not that far?_

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I had to find you, now I've found you. You're the missing piece I need…the song inside of me. I had to find you, now I've found you. Oh yeah, yeah._

_You're the remedy I'm searching hard to find…to fix the puzzle that I see inside. Painting all my dreams the color of your smile…when I find you it will be alright. I need to try to get to where you are…Could it be you're not that far?_

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I had to find you, now I've found you. You're the missing piece I need…the song inside of me. I had to find you, now I've found you._

_Been feeling lost, can't find the words to say…Spending all my time stuck in yesterday, cause where you are is where I wanna be. Next to you, you next to me…Oh…I had to find you… Yeah_

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I had to find you, now I've found you. You're the missing piece I need…the song inside of me. I had to find you, now I've found you. Yeah, yeah…_

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I had to find you, now I've found you. You're the missing piece I need…the song inside of me. I had to find you, now I've found you…Yeah, now I've found you._

As the bell chimed on the top floor Mitchie took a deep breath and followed Shane out, into the hallway.

Here there were only two doors. Shane pulled out something that looked like a credit card and swiped it through the card reader, gaining entrance to the room.

* * *

"Mom," Shane called out into what appeared to be a living room, complete with a brand new x-box under the television set.

Mitchie could not believe her eyes.

_So this really _is _how the other half lives. Wow, I could get used to this._

"I'll be there in a minute Shane, I'm on the phone with your dad," a woman's voice came from another room within the suite.

Mitchie saw Shane's body tense up more than her own had when she had heard she was going to meet his mother for the first time.

Even hearing her voice made Mitchie begin to panic slightly again. There was no calming her down this time. Shane was stressing himself, and her needs needed to come second.

"I'm sure it's just a call to wish you and your mom a happy Thanksgiving, totally normal," Mitchie tried to comfort.

"I hope," Shane replied, "but she's been on the phone with him since I left with Nate for coffee."

Shane sat down in a perfectly stuffed lazy-boy, rubbing his eyes as if that would make the stress go away. Mitchie stood behind him and massaged his shoulders for a couple minutes, humming more to herself a melody that had come to mind on her way from McDonalds to the hotel.

"That's a really good melody," Shane commented, "what song is that?"

"I'm not sure… It's something that just came to me… I hope it's not taken…"

Shane stood abruptly having heard the sound of footsteps.

"Mitchie!" Jason said rounding the corner and wrapping her into a big bear hug.

Shane returned to the chair, breathing slightly heavier than normal.

* * *

_If mom had seen that, there would be no way she would let me go out with Mitchie. She would think that we were all about the physical. I can't screw this up…_

"Ok, Shane, what did you want me for?" a woman asked, as she rounded the corner to see Mitchie and Jason separating from their hug.

"I'm going to go grab a smoothie," Jason said, heading for the door.

"Later Jason," Shane called after Jason, then turning to his mother, "Mom, I would like you to meet my girlfriend Miss Michelle Torres. Mitchie, this is my mom, Mrs. Gray."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Mitchie said, sticking out her hand.

Mrs. Gray looked over Mitchie once and then shook her hand.

"It's a pleasure to meet you too, Michelle. It's so nice to finally put a name with a face. I've heard nothing but good about you from the boys…and Sarah…and Nate's parents."

Mitchie's cheeks turned rosy. She was not used to people wanting to meet her. Generally, she just faded into the background.

Mitchie looked to Shane for guidance on what to do next. He gave her a half smile and took her hand.

_Mom can't disapprove of that… She can handle us holding hands…_

"Well, Michelle, I hope you find our way of spending the holidays very enjoyable."

"Thank you, Mrs. Gray," Mitchie responded politely.

"We're going to go help Mitchie's parents unpack. Ok Mom?" Shane said, already inching towards the door.

"Shane, honey, I need to talk to you before you go off with Mitchie."

Shane dropped Mitchie's hand and said quietly to her, "Go ahead next door, I'll be there in a couple minutes."

Mitchie smiled back and left the room leaving mother and son alone to their own discussion.

"What's up mom?"

Grace took a seat on the sofa and motioned Shane to come sit next to her.

"I just got off the phone with your dad."

Shane nodded.

"Is he still mad at me?"

Grace nodded.

"Am I in some sort of trouble with him?"

Grace shook her head.

"Mom, what's going on?"

Tears started to form in Grace's eyes.

"Mom please," Shane said, wrapping his arms around his mother.

"Shane, I don't want to fight anymore. I love what you've turned out to be. You are the most wonderful son a woman could ever ask for. Your father doesn't see that, but I do. He just told me that he's coming home for Christmas…"

"Oh," was all Shane could come up with, "well, that's good. Isn't it?"

"Of course," Mrs. Gray replied, "but he doesn't want to go to Uncle Brown's for Christmas. He's angry about your accomplishments. As I'm sure you recall, he doesn't see them that way. His feeling is, if he can keep you away from Brown, he can keep you away from your music."

"He's crazy! How the heck did he come up with that idea?" Shane said, standing up and pacing.

"He just doesn't think like you do, honey. I'm not asking you to give up this dream or to even pretend it's not there, but for this Christmas can we do this for your dad? Can we spend Christmas in Arizona, away from the boys and Brown? I know Michelle wants to be with you and I see the positive influence she is on your life, but I don't think your dad will feel that way, at least not given our current situation. Please, Shane, all I'm asking is for Christmas and the week before it that your father's home to be music free."

Shane nodded in defeat. He had nowhere else to turn in the situation. His mother was siding with his father on this one. Grace and Peter's marriage was on the rocks already because of Shane's chosen profession. The water he was treading in was deep enough to drown his mother and he never wanted to see her unhappy.

"I'll do this because I love you, but it's not going to be easy for me."

* * *

**So? What did you think? Please be brutally honest, you know I can't track you down if I don't like your review other than right here so please plaste your full oppinion in the comment box.**


	43. College Fans

**Hey everybody, sorry for the very very very long delay in this chapter. School and work kinda took over my life...but that's why i give you the last time part in my story. Hopefully my writers block has cleared and I will be able to post the next chapter soon! Anywho...enjoy!**

* * *

**LAST TIME**

Shane nodded in defeat. He had nowhere else to turn in the situation. His mother was siding with his father on this one. Grace and Peter's marriage was on the rocks already because of Shane's chosen profession. The water he was treading in was deep enough to drown his mother and he never wanted to see her unhappy.

"I'll do this because I love you, but it's not going to be easy for me."

**NOW**

_Knock, knock._

Mitchie smiled as she opened the door. She walked out and closed the door, pulling the brunette with her towards the elevator, missing the sad look on his face.

"We're done unpacking so I thought we could go for a walk and maybe get a movie or something."

Shane nodded his head, allowing himself to be led to the elevator.

The ride down to the lobby was silent. Mitchie rubbed her thumb over Shane's palm in a comforting way. Now, stopping to take a look at him, she saw the tears welling in his eyes and the dejected look on his face. Mitchie opened her mouth to ask Shane what was wrong, but the elevator door opened and several teenage girls entered. The couple quickly broke apart.

"Oh, my gosh! You're Shane Gray! Can I have your autograph?" one of the girls asked as she realized who had already been occupying the space.

"Sure," Shane said, smiling that oh so fake smile that only those close to him could see through.

"Oh, me too!" one of the other girls chimed in.

Shane sighed and gave her a smile, "Sure," he said, shifting eyes to Mitchie in a way to say sorry.

At the lobby, the girls got off. Mitchie was happy the girls had not realized who she was. After the paparazzi fiasco she did not know what to expect from people. It would have been nice to have signed the slips of paper too, but for now Mitchie was just happy to be with Shane and live her dream whilst blending in to the background. As the two got off the elevator themselves, Shane's low-spirited face returned. Mitchie took his hand and led him to the door, leading out of the hotel.

To Mitchie's amazement, there were not any paparazzi around. The two simply walked out the front door and down the street hand in hand. Perhaps the paparazzi had taken Thanksgiving off too.

_They have families just like we do. I wonder if they ever get time away from work… I mean, even celebrities get some holidays off. The guys aren't singing anywhere for Christmas or New Years._

"What's bugging you Shane?" Mitchie asked as the couple rounded the corner, "Don't deny it, something is bugging you. I saw that look in the elevator."

Shane took in a deep breath.

"My father is coming home for Christmas."

"Shane, that's great! You're family gets to be together for the holidays."

"It's not that simple Mitchie," Shane said stopping.

"Well, why not?"

"You know how I told you that my father does not like my choice of career?"

"Yea," Mitchie said, nodding.

"Well, my mom asked me to give up music for the week he's home…"

"Oh…What does that mean? No guitar or writing or…" Mitchie asked, looking down at their intertwined fingers.

"Christmas and New Year's Eve are exactly a week apart and this year…I won't be at Brown's…"

Mitchie looked up into Shane's watery eyes, giving his hand a squeezed she urged him forward down the block.

"It'll be ok. We still have the phone and I can get a webcam. I'm sure Nate or Jason already has one. It'll be like you're right there with us… Break is two weeks long for me and with all the music stuff, Brown will probably ask me to be in the studio a lot, but maybe I can convince him to let me come to California to record. You're last couple shows are there, right?"

Shane nodded, a watery smile forming on his face. It was great to know Mitchie understood his circumstances even if it broke his heart to be away from her, Brown and his band mates for the holidays. She had come up with a simple solution and his spirits began to rise.

"Yea, we can do our own special Christmas then or something."

"Promise me that you'll make the best of it, Shane. I know that you and your dad don't exactly get along, but he's still your dad and—"

"I know, Mitchie, but I can't promise that…I would feel horrible if I couldn't keep that promise. I already told my mom I would do my best."

"What exactly did your mom say about Christmas?"

Shane explained that his mother loved Mitchie, but she felt that a quiet Christmas in Arizona without her was what was best for the family dynamic. His dad would only be in town a week; and that for that week he had to act like he was perfectly normal even though the real situation was far from it. He also explained his fears about his mother taking his phone for that week to try and dissuade him from contacting her, Nate or Jason.

"If you don't have your cell phone, we'll just have to do Merry Christmas the old fashion way," Mitchie commented with a smile.

"What do you mean?" Shane asked as they reached the video store on the corner.

"Well, I'll give you my address, you give me yours. We can send each other Christmas cards and I don't know maybe share a mid-night phone conversation or two."

Shane smiled. Mitchie really did know how to make him feel better about anything. The two entered the movie store feeling happier than the walk had started.

"What do you want to watch?" Mitchie asked Shane.

"I don't know, I've seen a lot of the newer stuff because of touring, but if you want to see something new, that's fine."

"If I pick, you might not be too happy. I would probably pick something sappy."

"Well, let's make a deal, I'll pick one movie and you'll pick one movie and we'll watch both. Then we should pick one together to watch with everyone on Friday too."

Mitchie agreed, leaving Shane at the front of the store in the direction of the romance films.

_What will Mitchie like that isn't too action packed? I want her to like what I pick, but I don't want to get stuck watching two sappy love movies… What's this? Stormbreaker? Hmm… sounds interesting… It's a little old, two years, but it's still a Disney flick and it has action! Good, we can see this._

Shane left his section in search of something that he and Mitchie could agree on for the group to watch while Mitchie continued to search for the perfect movie.

* * *

_What is romantic, but not to sappy? I can't drag Shane through A Walk to Remember or the Notebook…that would be too torturous for a first movie date. Wow, that's so weird…it's really kinda a date. Ok Mitchie, focus. Shane already has something in his hands and you've got…nothin'_

Mitchie looked up and down the shelves a couple more times, scrutinizing over what movie to grab for her choice and then she saw it.

_Perfect… girly, but not to sappy…Now to find Shane and see what he has in mind for Friday._

Mitchie found Shane browsing through the action movies. He already had two movies in his hand.

"Hey, what ya got there?" Mitchie asked approaching him.

"Oh, just Agent Cody Banks, but I'm guessing you have already seen it."

"Yea, but I wouldn't mind watching it again if that's what you want to see. I think it's kind of a chick flick believe it or not. That Frankie Muniz is quite the looker."

Shane softly chucked putting it back on the shelf while Mitchie continued down the aisle to the comedy section.

"How about this?" she asked Shane, showing him the cover of "She's the Man."

Shane took the movie from her hand and turned it over, read the back and handed it back to her.

"It sounds good, but are you sure you want a movie with Channing Tatum in it?"

Mitchie smiled cruelly and nodded.

Rolling his eyes, Shane led the way towards the front of the store. He dropped the movie on the counter where Mitchie's pick and "She's the Man" were also placed.

The cashier, a bored college student sat behind the desk leafing through a text book, not even noting that she had customers, let alone a boy from Connect 3. Shane cleared his throat rather loudly and the girl looked up from the book.

"Sorry," she said, getting up from her homework and coming to the counter.

"It's totally cool," Mitchie replied, "I know what it's like getting wrapped up in a book."

The girl quickly swiped their items, not even looking up passed the cash register until Shane handed her his credit card. She looked up, unsure if what she was seeing was real or not and then deciding to make sure.

"Can I see some ID?" she asked.

_You're kidding…she actually wants to see Shane's driver's license. That's a little weird…_

Shane obliged by taking out his driver's license and passing over the counter. The girl looked at it, compared it to the credit card, swiped the credit card and passed both back.

"Please sign the tablet and then sign this slip and you are free to go," the girl said slyly giving Shane a slip of receipt paper to sign.

Shane smiled, shook his head and sign in both places, trading the sheet of receipt paper for a real receipt and the movies. He passed Mitchie the movies, reached for her hand and led the way out of the store.

"What was that about? I'm really confused. Was there something wrong with the card?" Mitchie asked, as the door to the movie store shut behind them.

Shane laughed at Mitchie with her furrowed brow and small pout on her lips.

"Oh Mitchie, that's why I love you so much."

* * *

"What did I say?"

"Mitchie, I'm a rock star, but the average age of my fans is between middle school and high school. She didn't really need to see my ID or need my signature twice. She did not want to ask for an autograph because she's too old to go gaga over me."

"Then what was with the ID and since when is it uncool to be a Connect 3 fan?"

"Well, she wanted to make sure I was who I said I was. When a celebrity walks into an normal place without paps everywhere no one expects them to be who they say they are. If you think about it there are a lot of fans that say things like 'Are you really Shane Gray?' or something like it. It was her way of asking without asking. For your next question, you really expect people in college to have posters of Connect 3 on their walls or buy magazines like Pop-Informer? Most of the college students are broke and when they can buy a magazine they buy it for the actual content, not the rip out pin-ups."

"I guess that makes sense. Have you guys ever thought about doing something to get their attention like having a concert on a college campus?"

Shane shook his head as the two continued down the street. It is not as though Shane disliked the college fans, but they always seemed to be fans for more than the music. Nate had pointed out the facts. To reach a college audience greater than the base that they already had, there would be changes to be made. These changes did not go in the direction of the band or in the direction of the group's morals. Although Shane would not have minded the success spawning from the change he had decided that life was not about being the latest sex symbol or how many girls were obsessed with you. What really counted were those who loved you and were happy for you. This though brought Shane back to his thoughts on his father.

_Dad has never really been there for me has he? He was sent out on special operation the week after I was born and he's relocated the family a couple times, but he really hasn't been around for the relocation process. Does he count as family or just someone who pays the bills at home? Mom is heart broken when he's gone, but she's worse when he's home. I know that she's happy he's around but it hurts more knowing that he is only around for a couple of weeks. Sure, he was there for a couple of my birthdays and what he is doing is noble, but Uncle Brown and Nate's dad really have been the only father figures I've ever known…I know he's my dad and my mom loves him and I think I love him too, but it's not the love meant for a father. He doesn't really deserve that, he hasn't supported me through anything, he doesn't call to check up on me and he doesn't send me letters even when he knows I'm home…Well I won't be that type of father. I'll be like Nate's dad or maybe more like Brown…I want to be there for my kids and be the dad I wish I had growing up. So what about Christmas? How do I act around a guy I haven't seen or talked to in three years?_

"Shane? Shane!" Mitchie called, pulling Shane out of his thoughts.

She was three stores ahead of him. Somehow while he was deep in his thoughts he had stopped walking. Mitchie had thought he was just looking at a shop and be along behind her quite quickly, but when she had reached the end of the street and Shane had not moved, she thought she better bring him back to reality.

"Are you ok?" a tone of concern in her voice.

"Yea, I'm fine. Just thinking about Christmas again…"

"It'll go fine. Come on, we have a dress rehearsal in an hour and I'm pretty sure Nate will kill you if we're late."

"I'm coming," Shane said catching up to her.

* * *

"Hey Jason, you want to do another video?"

Jason's head shot up from the couch he had been laying on.

"Yea, what do you want to do it about?"

"How about what we do to kill time? I mean really that's all we're doing right now right? We have nothing to do until we go on stage and it doesn't have to be all serious or anything. I mean you could do something like play a video game and I could say… be writing a song."

"I love it! It's new and different. Ok so where should we tape it?"

"Well, we're in a hotel with an arcade, so I'm thinking tape my part up here and then yours down in the arcade," Nate suggested before beginning to cough more than before.

"Dude, are you ok?"

"I'm fine, just a tickle in my throat…I'll just drink some orange juice and it'll go away."

"Ok man, but maybe you should rest your voice tonight…worst thing that could happen was losing it on national television."

"Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence, dude."

"Any time buddy," Jason said with a smile.

* * *

"Caitlyn I want to hear more about Tyler. How did you two meet?" Payton asked.

Caitlyn sighed. Dinner was over and the family had retired to the living room for desert. Caitlyn knew that although the subject had moved to her parent's work life and her aunt's new renovation job, it would not be long before her cousins tired from the adult discussion and returned to the gossip of the boys. She had hoped that her cousins would want to share about their boyfriends, but luck was not shining on her.

"Well, we had classes together at camp a couple of years ago, but neither of us really got a chance to speak to each other. He and I were still trying to make friends. It took us a couple years to actually meet and then last summer he came back to camp and we actually talked and got to know each other a little."

"That's cool. So how come he isn't coming tomorrow?"

"Tyler's family is getting together in New York to go to the parade together. It's a family tradition that his parents won't let him skip out on. I mean if we had been together for longer than a couple of months I'm pretty sure I would have tried to convince my parents to let me go there, but then I wouldn't get to hang with you girls."

Payton rolled her eyes. This was the third time tonight Caitlyn had change the subject off of her boyfriend. Obviously, there was something Caitlyn was not telling her or Allie about the new guy in her life. This was the first time Caitlyn had ever mentioned a having a guy at all during a family gathering and she felt kind of weird about sharing it with everyone else. It was visible that Caitlyn squirmed every time Tyler was brought up as if there was something about Tyler that was not quite true. She would sit up, readjust how she was seated and then look into her lap as she shared anything about him.

_What is a safe subject?_ Caitlyn thought, _Is music safe? I mean I could talk about Nate without actually trying that way. He is a famous person who happened to be a Camp Rock legend. It's not like Allie is the sharpest tool in the shed…I love her but, she can be really thick. Payton is really smart, but there are plenty of chances that she wouldn't catch it._

"So, who are you guys looking forward to seeing on the parade tomorrow?"

Payton sighed. She was the oldest of the girls and was realizing the pain of waking up on a day off of work. College brought her to a point in her life that made her realize she did not need to get up early unless she was going to classes.

"What?" Caitlyn asked, trying to understand what she had said that required a sigh from her favorite cousin. Sure, she had changed a lot since puberty, but she was still Caitlyn's favorite.

"Allie has been talking about nothing but THE SHANE GRAY being in the parade this year. I guess she does not realize that the whole band is going to be there."

Allie fought back, "It's not just his looks. We have so much in common…he likes green, I like green. He and I also like the same movies and ice cream flavors. Oh, and we can both sing really, really well."

Payton rolled her eyes, "Allie you only like that stuff because Shane likes that stuff."

"Oh, well Connect 3 is who I'm looking forward to too. I mean, Shane's good looking and all, but really their music is pretty awesome," Caitlyn said, trying to diffuse the situation.

"You still like Connect 3 Caitlyn? I would have thought that you would be over that music. I mean, they kind of sold out," Payton commented.

Caitlyn pondered this for a moment.

_Yea, they really didn't get to write what they wanted last year, but Nate's newer stuff is a lot different than last year's album. I mean…Shane has been able to do a lot of different styles with his music too. I guess that's all thanks to Camp Rock Rehab…ha-ha…that would be a fun reality show…_

"Well, their newer sound is really good. It kind of reminds me of their first album," Caitlyn said, getting up and heading to her room for her computer, "Here, I'll show you some new stuff."

Caitlyn ran up to her room, grabbed her laptop and the unreleased copy of the new Connect 3 CD she had gotten in the mail from Nate and returned to the living room.

After playing the two released songs on the album for Payton and watching Allie dance around the room as if she was having a seizure, Caitlyn stopped the music.

"Wow, you're right. That's not that bad. If Mom and Dad made me take Allie to a concert I might actually enjoy it. Can I borrow the CD?" Payton asked.

"Sorry, I can't loan it to you. I only got it for my production class. I was told to guard it with my life."

Caitlyn was only half lying. Nate had told her not to share it with people just yet because there was a specific release date and if it got around too much people wouldn't want to buy the CD. Caitlyn's internship would indeed be working with Connect 3 on their music, but not for this album. Just thinking about it made Caitlyn smile.

Payton accepted Caitlyn's answer but not without a fight. She begged and pleaded for Caitlyn to play more. It was almost as ridiculous as a teen with Bieber Fever. With Allie's help she managed to get Caitlyn to play one more song, but not a song that was really a secret, just one not as known.

_Every time I think I'm closer to the heart_

_What it means to know just who I am_

_I think I finally found a better place to start_

_No one ever seems to understand_

_I need to try to get to where you are_

_Could it be you're not that far?_

_You're the voice I hear inside my head _

_The reason that I'm singing_

_I need to find you_

_Gotta find you_

_You're the missing piece I need _

_The song inside of me_

_I need to find you_

_I gotta find you_

_Oh yeah_

_Yeah_

_You're the remedy I'm searching hard to find_

_To fix the puzzle that I see inside_

_Painting all my dreams the color of your smile_

_When I find you it will be alright_

_I need to try to get to where you are_

_Could it be you're not that far?_

* * *

_You're the voice I hear inside my head_

_The reason that I'm singing_

_I need to find you_

_Gotta find you_

_You're the missing piece I need_

_The song inside of me_

_I need to find you_

_Gotta find you_

_Been feeling lost_

_Can't find the words to say_

_Spending all my time stuck in yesterday_

_Where you are is where I wanna be_

_Next to you, you next to me_

_Oh _

_I need to find you_

_Yeah_

_You're the voice I hear inside my head_

_The reason that I'm singing_

_I need to find you (need to find you)_

_Gotta find you (yeah)_

_You're the missing piece I need_

_The song inside of me_

_I need to find you_

_Gotta find you (I gotta find you)_

_You're the voice I hear inside my head_

_The reason that I'm singing_

_I need to find you (need to find you)_

_Gotta find you (gotta find you)_

_You're the missing piece I need_

_The song inside of me_

_I need to find you_

_Gotta find you_

_Yeah_

_Gotta find you_

Mitchie clapped for Shane. It had been a couple weeks since she had heard him play the song he had written for her and something about it seemed to always give her goose-bumps. Perhaps it was the love that Shane had put into the song even before he knew it was her voice that was singing or maybe it was the shear fact that Shane was singing it to her about her.

_I'm really excited for the world to hear that song. It's my favorite song on the album and it's about me! Oh man, now it's my turn…oh breathe Mitchie, just breathe._

_Whoo, yeah, yeah, yeah!__  
__How to choose__  
__who to be.__  
__Well let's see__  
__There's so many choices now__  
__Play guitar, be a movie star__  
__in my head, a voice says_

_Why not?__  
__Try everything__  
__Why stop?__  
__Reach for any dream__  
__I can rock__  
__'cause it's my life and now's the time__  
__Who will I be?__  
__It's up to me__  
__All the never ending possibilities__  
__That I can see__  
__There's nothing that I can't do__  
__Who will I be?__  
__Yes I believe__  
__I get to make the future what I want to__  
__If I can become anyone and know the choice is__  
__Up to me!_

_If I decide__  
__I'm the girl__  
__To change the world__  
__I can do it anytime__  
__Opportunity__  
__Right in front of me__  
__And the choice if all mine__  
_

Mitchie could not help but gain excitement from the rehearsal. She was finally showing more than just her friends who she really was. People were about to hear her music for the first time and she could not help but jump around and have fun with her music.

* * *

Shane watched at the girl of his dreams jumped around and belted out her song with all her heart. It was then that he realized that she was perfect and even though he had only known her for a couple months, he knew she was someone he could never live without.

His thoughts were interrupted but a harsh cough eliciting from Nate's mouth.

"Nate, dude, are you good to sing tomorrow?"

"Yea," Nate coughed out, "I just have a little tickle in my throat. I'm sure I'll be fine tomorrow for the gig. I have to be right? I mean it's not like we can let our fans down."

Shane nodded, but was nervous about letting it go. Nate never got sick, ever. He was the one who hung out with Jason while he had the chicken-pox and shared water bottles with Shane when he had the flu. Nate never coughed or complained of throat problems or anything.

"You sure, dude? You're never sick."

"Just drop it, Shane. I'm singing in that parade tomorrow, healthy or not," Nate responded.

Just as he finished speaking George approached the group.

"Hey, guys that was excellent as always. I just want to give you a few notes and you'll be done until the parade tomorrow. First off, Nate you need to keep your mouth shut as much as possible until you sing tomorrow. I can hear the crackling in your voice and I saw you coughing yesterday. Jason, the guitar you're playing tomorrow must be tuned to a little flat. The weather is supposed to be really cold and it will mess with the metal strings. Shane, make sure to keep your focus. You've been easily distracted lately and now is not the time to lose focus. Ok, that's all. I'll see you guys at five tomorrow morning. Good night."

Nate and Jason left, leaving Shane with Mitchie and her mom. Shane wandered over to where Connie stood smiling at Mitchie.

"She's doing great isn't she," Connie commented.

"Yea, she's going to steal America's heart tomorrow," Shane agreed.

"I hope she's not as nervous as I am to have my baby up there on a float going down Broadway."

"I have full confidence in your daughter," Shane commented, "She'll be a little nervous at first, but she's going to do fantastic. If she's anything like I was the first time, she'll forget the words the first go around and by the time a camera gets in front of her, she'll be pure gold. All she has to remember is to plant her feet at that point. Nate almost fell off the float the first year we were in the parade."

"That's good advice. I'm glad Mitchie has you around. I know all this fame stuff would be a lot harder if she didn't have you and your band mates there to show her how it's done. Oh, and your uncle has been nothing but fantastic to her too."

* * *

Nate wandered up to his room. He really hadn't been feeling all that great for the last couple of days. He had thought it was just stress and the dry air, but now he wondered. Was Shane right to be concerned? Nate let out another harsh cough, sinking deep into his throat. The pain seemed to be doing everything it could to hold on.

_Maybe Shane should just sing his song to Mitchie… it might be better if I don't sing for a couple of days… No, it's for the fans! I have to do this. I just won't talk at all tonight._

'_I'm falling even more in love with you, letting go of all I've held onto. I'm standing here until you make me move. I'm hanging by a moment here with you'._

"Hello," Nate said into the phone, inwardly cursing himself for not having the control to stop talking for even a minute.

_Hey Nate, how did rehearsals go?_

"Good," Nate said, coughing again.

_You sure you're ok? That cough sounds worse than before._

"I thought I was until you and Shane started making a big deal out of it. Now I'm not so sure."

_Well, then I'm going to stop making you talk. We can text later, my parents want me to help set up a fire in the back yard. It's weird to be out of the snow here. Camp looks so magical and home looks so… dry. Go order some hot soup and maybe find a movie to watch on TV. I'll text you later and I'll call you tomorrow after the parade. I promise I'll be watching._

"Thanks Caitlyn. I'll talk to you soon," Nate said hanging up the phone.

_A movie huh? Well, maybe Shane will let me borrow the one he got at the store today…_

_Shane-_

_Can I borrow that movie you got today? I wanna distract myself out of talking._

_-Nate_

_Nate-_

_Sure. Mitchie and I got one for all of us to watch so after she's done with rehearsal we'll head up there and join you._

_-Shane_

* * *

Mitchie finished rehearsing, grabbed her guitar and headed towards her mom and Shane.

"How was it?"

"It was fantastic," Shane said, giving his girl a hug.

"It was amazing," Connie said, giving Mitchie another hug.

"Really? It was? I thought I missed a couple of the higher notes."

"Mitchie, it's your song. Nobody but we and the label have heard it before. People will love it no matter how you sing it," Shane soothed.

"Thanks. Now what do you want to do? We have nothing to do for the rest of the night," Mitchie said, turning first to her mom and then to Shane.

"Your father and I were planning on going to see a play with Nate, Jason and Shane's parents, but I thought that you might want to spend some time with your friends. You can come if you want, but you don't have to," Connie said.

"Nate wants to watch a movie, we could watch Stormbreaker," Shane suggested.

Mitchie liked the idea, planning to order take out for the four, possibly five of them when she had seen how lonely Nate had looked.

* * *

"So much for date night, huh?" Shane said, entering the suite the guys were sharing with their families.

"Well, Nate needs us right now. We can go on a date Saturday. Remember, we don't leave until Sunday anyway."

Shane nodded and opened the door for Mitchie whose hands were full of Chinese take-out.

"Nate, Sarah, Jason we're here for the movie. We brought food," Shane shouted into the suite.

The five of them sat down surrounding the television, each holding a take-out box or bowl full of different Asian concoctions while they enjoyed the movies. By the time it ended Nate and his sister had fallen asleep, Jason was building pyramid out of take-out boxes and Mitchie and Shane were the only ones really paying attention.

"I think it's time for you to head back," Shane whispered in Mitchie's ear before getting up.

"But I'm not even tired," Mitchie said, stifling a yawn.

"Well, even if I did ignore the fact that you totally just yawned, I would have to say that we have an early morning tomorrow and you need your beauty rest," Shane said, helping Mitchie to her feet and pulling her in to a hug.

Mitchie smiled at the fact that Shane found her beautiful. It was something she did not hear often enough. Many people believed that beauty was only skin deep and even though Mitchie tried to be one of them, something about hearing it from someone she cared about who was not related to her made it feel different.

Shane walked Mitchie to her door before saying 'goodnight' with a soft kiss on her forehead.

* * *

**So? What did you think? Good or bad, brilliant or terrible, I want all the reviews!**


	44. Happy Thanksgiving!

**Hey all! I know, I took forever to finish this chapter. Thank you soo much if you're still reading. This should cover a lot of ground so we can get to Christmas and New Years. I know that chapter won't be up appropriately by New Years, but I hope to get another chapter up before I head back to school. Enjoy!**

**Lacey**

* * *

**LAST TIME**

Mitchie smiled at the fact that Shane found her beautiful. It was something she did not hear often enough. Many people believed that beauty was only skin deep and even though Mitchie tried to be one of them, something about hearing it from someone she cared about who was not related to her made it feel different.

Shane walked Mitchie to her door before saying 'goodnight' with a soft kiss on her forehead.

**NOW**

'_Hey you, don't let 'em see you frown, Come on turn it upside down. Don't ever quit, get up, get up. When life, puts you to the test, there's nothing better than your best. Show 'em what you got, you got a lot. Show 'em what you got, get up, get up. Get up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up. Whoa, whoa, up, up, up.'_

_Good grief, it's five AM! Who schedules a call time this early! Well, this is the life I bargained for right? Come on Mitchie, get up and moving before mom comes in and pushes you out of bed._

Mitchie dragged herself up from her pillow to a sitting position. Her eyelids fought for dominance over her view, desiring to stay closed. It had been a while since she had gotten up at five in the morning. Back when she had attended school with Sierra it had been no problem, but at Camp Rock High she had been allowed to sleep in more.

"Good morning, Mitchie," Connie said, entering the room.

"Morning, Mom," Mitchie replied through a yawn.

"How are you feeling? Nervous? Excited? Anxious?"

"Tired," Mitchie yawned making her mother laugh.

The morning seemed to pass in a blink of an eye as a prep team came in to do Mitchie's hair and make-up as well as a stylist to dress her. It was a life Mitchie had always wanted and with just this little taste she could see herself getting very used to it.

As Mitchie's stylist was putting the final touches on her dress she heard a knock at the front door.

"Hey, Mitch," her dad called from the front room of the suite, "there's someone here to see you…he claims he's your boyfriend."

Mitchie rushed out to meet him in the living room.

"Happy Thanksgiving," she said, enveloping Shane into a hug.

"Happy Thanksgiving to you to," he whispered in her ear.

As Mitchie pulled away she noticed something off about Shane.

"Is everything ok?"

Shane shook his head.

* * *

_I can't believe I lost my voice the day of one of the most important performances of the year. What am I going to do? I guess Shane will sing his love song that he wrote for Mitchie and Jason will sing back up, but this is ridiculous! I can't sing at my own show!_

'_I'm falling even more in love with you, letting go of all I've held onto. I'm standing here until you make me move. I'm hanging by a moment here with you'_

"Hello?" Nate whispered out.

_Good morning sleepy head. Did I wake you?_

"No. I've been up for a couple hours now," Nate said in soft voice.

_Then why are you whispering?_ Caitlyn asked.

"I lost my voice."

_No, you said you were going to be fine yesterday…_

"I did what I could and I've already drank half a gallon of orange juice this morning…it's gone."

_What are you going to do? You can't just... not perform._

"Shane can sing his song for Mitchie and I can still play guitar and drums."

_Oh Nate, I'm so sorry. I wish I was there to give you a hug and tell you things were going to be ok…_

"Talking to you is helping. Well, except for my voice…"

Caitlyn giggled.

_I'm sorry…I should probably let you go. I just wanted to tell you good luck; happy Thanksgiving and I'll be watching you._

"Thanks Caitlyn. I'll talk to you soon."

_Ok. Bye._

"Bye."

Nate dropped the phone on his bed before falling onto it himself.

_This is going to be one long day…_

* * *

Caitlyn sighed. She wished she could be there for Nate, but there really was no way she could get to him in time even if her parents let her fly out. The airports were booked solid for this time of year and by the time she got there with air travel it would already be late evening.

"Caitlyn, good you're up," Caitlyn's mom said, coming to her door.

"Happy Thanksgiving Mom," Caitlyn said, turning to her mother.

"Happy Thanksgiving to you too. I was wondering if you would like to help me make breakfast for the family. I was thinking of making turkey shaped pancakes."

"Sure, that sounds like fun!" Caitlyn replied, getting up from her bed and following her mom downstairs.

It was not very often that Caitlyn's mom and her got to spend any real time together. Her mom and dad traveled a lot and never really were around. In her early childhood Caitlyn had been passed from nanny to nanny until she was old enough for school. Her parents had sent her away to boarding school as a way to support her from afar. Although her mom and dad came to visit, it was always a family dinner, maybe a movie or a live show and then they would drop her off at the door to the school, say "I love you," give her a hug and head back to the airport. Caitlyn's summer vacations had consisted of summer camps and going to friend's summer homes for days of fun on the beach. Her parents would steal her away from her life of freedom for a two week vacation with them every summer. That is when Caitlyn learned the most about her parents and actually found herself enjoying having someone to lean on.

"How about you get out the frying pan and cookie cutters and I'll start mixing the batter," Caitlyn's mom suggested.

"Ok," Caitlyn said, already reaching for the pan.

"So, how's your school year going?"

"Oh, it's going good. Finals are coming up, but I think I'll be ok. My biggest trouble is math and Spanish, but my roommate will help me with that."

"So, the switch from private school to Camp Rock High has actually been an improvement on your grades?"

"Yea, I mean, it's been nice getting to take classes closer to my career path and the other classes have some really interesting teachers. Take my history teacher for example, he actually fought in a war and my dance teacher went to Julliard. My guitar teacher is a famous country singer and her sister is a student too. She's one of my roommates actually."

"Well that is interesting. So how many roommates do you have exactly?"

"Three. There's Mitchie, Alicia and Abigail. Mitchie is the one who's been helping me with my school work, Alicia is best friends with one of the Connect 3 guy's little sister and Abigail is my guitar teacher's sister."

"Oh, that's fun. So, are you rubbing any shoulders that could get you into your field?"

"I can't believe I forgot to tell you this…Lava Records has offered me an internship that I can do through the school!"

"Honey, that's great news! I want to hear all about it."

"The owner of Lava Records recently changed and it happens to be the president of CRH. He has been working with me since I started going to camp at Camp Rock and he offered me the gig. Brown will have me working with Mitchie on her soon to be released album and the Connect 3 tour. I know my school work has to come first, but that's the great thing about this! Brown has decided that it will take the place of my producing class because I already know everything there is to know in the class. He says the only real thing I need is hands on experience and since Mitchie will be recording at school I'll be working on her album with real record producers and executives."

"Wow, sweetheart, that's awesome! So is this the Mitchie in your cabin?" Her mom asked while placing the pancake batter in the turkey shaped cookie cutter on the frying pan.

"Yea, she's amazing. I haven't been allowed to touch her stuff officially yet, but I helped mix the background music that she's singing to today at the Marcy's Thanksgiving Day Parade."

"When does that start?"

"Oh about an hour from now."

"So, you're getting old enough for me to ask this question…any guys in your life? I know you mentioned a boyfriend to your cousins, but I wasn't sure if you were just making that up so that they would stop talking about theirs."

"Actually, he really does exist," Caitlyn replied, flipping the pancakes, "You probably know of him. His name is Nate and he's in the band Connect 3."

"Oh, really? You know your father was in a band when I met him too."

"Really? I didn't know Dad sang."

"Yea, he was in a jazz band that played at the coffee shop I studied at when I was in college."

"That's so cool. So was it like love at first sight?"

"Not quite… your dad had a girlfriend at the time, but his best friend was the bassist in the band and he asked me out. When your dad got dumped I was on a date with his friend and he called and made it sound like someone was dying. We rushed over to his house and from then on he was the third wheel. After about a year, me and the bassist broke up, but your dad and I started hanging out, just the two of us. Within about a year and a half of that he proposed and I said yes."

"Mom, that's so romantic. It sounds like such a love story."

"Maybe I should write a book," Caitlyn's mom joked, looking up to see Allie and Payton coming through the door into the kitchen.

"Happy Thanksgiving girls," Caitlyn's mom said.

"Happy Thanksgiving," the girls muttered out.

"Something smells good," Payton said.

"Pancakes for my three favorite girls," Caitlyn's mom said back.

"I'm telling mom you said that," Allie joked, taking a seat at the breakfast table.

* * *

"Raise your arms up," the safety manager said to Mitchie.

The parade line up had begun and it was time for the celebrities to take their places on floats. Mitchie could see Shane's float a little behind. Nate was fiddling with his guitar strap, Jason had a camera out and Shane was talking to someone from a channel 9.

"Here's your microphone," the sound guy from channel 7 was saying, "Use this microphone when you get in front of the Broadway Theater. Until then use the head set."

"Got it," Mitchie said, smiling at the guy.

"Once you get up on the float hook yourself onto the metal bar. That will keep you from falling if it starts to snow."

Mitchie nodded back to the safety manager before beginning her climb to the top of the float. According to Brown she would be the face of Make a Moose. Make a Moose was sponsoring a "Be Yourself" campaign and Mitchie's song was perfect for it.

After a quick good luck from her parents, Mitchie's float began to move towards Broadway.

_Oh my gosh I'm about to sing on TV! What if I'm already on TV? Oh wow there are people here, waiting for me to do something!_

Mitchie cued her drummer to start playing and the band joined him quickly.

_Whoo, yeah, yeah, yeah! How to choose who to be. Well let's see, there's so many choices now. Play guitar, be a movie star. In my head, a voice says: Why not? Try everything. Why stop? Reach for any dream. I can rock, 'cause it's my life and now's the time._

_Who will I be? It's up to me. All the never ending possibilities that I can see. There's nothing that I can't do. Who will I be? Yes I believe I get to make the future what I want to. If I can become anyone and know the choice is up to me! Who will I be?_

_If I decide I'm the girl to change the world. I can do it anytime. Opportunity, right in front of me and the choice if all mine. Why not? Try everything. Why stop? Reach for any dream. I can rock  
'cause it's my life and now's the time._

* * *

Sierra heard the voice before she entered the room.

_Was that Mitchie's voice? I mean, it could be I guess, but it's on TV. She would have told me if she was going to be on TV._

"Sierra honey, get in here! There's something you're going to want to see."

Sierra ran from the kitchen to the den and turned to face the TV screen. There in the flesh was her best friend. The crowds were cheering a girl she had known all her life on. Never in her wildest dreams did Sierra see Mitchie's dreams coming true. Of course she had hoped that someday she would see Mitchie's name in shining lights, but she thought that would have been at a local marque. She certainly was not expecting it to be scrolling across the bottom of the screen as Mitchie floated by on a Make a Moose float.

_Who will I be? It's up to me. All the never ending possibilities that I can see. There's nothing that I can't do. Who will I be? Yes I believe I get to make the future what I want to. If I can become anyone and know the choice is up to me! Who will I be?_

_I wanna find out who I am inside. Who will I be? I wanna show the way that I can shine, yeah!_

_Oh yeah, yeah! Who will I be? It's up to me. All the never ending possibilities that I can see. There's nothing that I can't do. Who will I be? Yes I believe I get to make the future what I want to.  
If I can become anyone and know the choice up to me. Who will I be? Whoo, who will I be? Who will I be!_

Sierra beamed from ear to ear.

"Mom, did my best friend really just sing on a float in front of Broadway Theater?"

"Yes honey she did," Kayla smiled, "Speaking of Mitchie, I know we really haven't had time to talk since I was out of town and I have some rather interesting news I need to talk to you about…"

"Ok, Mom. Can it wait until after Connect 3 performs?"

"Oh, ok," Kayla replied, a little sad to have taken a back seat to a musical group.

"_This is a little song I wrote for a very special girl in my life. I hope you like it."_

_Every time I think I'm closer to the heart, of what it means to know just who I am, I think I finally found a better place to start. No one ever seems to understand. I need to try to get to where you are. Could it be you're not that far?_

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you, I gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, I gotta find you. Oh yeah. Yeah._

_You're the remedy I'm searching hard to find, to fix the puzzle that I see inside, painting all my dreams the color of your smile. When I find you it will be alright. I need to try to get to where you are. Could it be you're not that far?_

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you, I gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, I gotta find you._

* * *

_Been feeling lost, can't find the words to say. Spending all my time stuck in yesterday, cause where you are is where I wanna be. Oh next to you and you next to me. Oh, I need to find you. Yeah._

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you, gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, I gotta find you._

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you, gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, gotta find you. Yeah. Gotta find you._

Nate stared down at his drum set.

_What do I do when the local news asks me what my plans are for the holiday? Just smile and whisper into the microphone?_

The song had ended but Nate was still staring down at the drums in front of him.

_I wish there was a way to magically feel better. My luck…_

* * *

Shane smiled out to the crowd as they left the front of Broadway Theatre. The crowd had loved the song and was cheering louder than the sound of the announcer explaining who was coming up on Broadway next.

_I hope Mitchie is enjoying this as much as I am. These fans are amazing! Was that a Mitchie poster I just saw out there? That would be amazing if it was._

* * *

"Ok Sierra, now that Connect 3 is done singing can we talk?" Kayla asked.

"Yea Mom, what did you want to talk about? Sierra said, turning off the television and patting the couch to invite her mother to sit next to her.

"I wanted to talk to you about Mitchie."

"What about her? Are you thinking that she's going to change because of this new stardom thing that started today? That's not going to happen Mom. She's a great girl with a good head on her shoulders and she's such a fantastic singer. I really think she can make it."

"Honey, just let me talk for a minute."

"Ok Mom. What is it?"

"Well, I've been on the phone with Mitchie's mom a lot lately and she said that with work she and Mr. Torres don't have a lot of time to take off for Mitchie's music career. You know how I went out of town the other week?"

"Yea, I thought that was a little weird, but what does all this have to do with Mitchie?

"Sweetheart, how would you feel if I became Mitchie's manager?"

Sierra sat there in awe of what she had just heard.

"Sierra, sweetie, say something."

"You mean you'd be with her on the road for her tours and stuff?"

"Yea, I'd be with her every time her parent's couldn't be."

"Mom, that's fantastic! Congratulations, how cool is that?"

"I'm glad you're excited about it, but it might mess with your life a little."

"I'm graduating in a month anyway, this is better than that. Show up at my graduation ceremony and I won't complain at all." Sierra said, giving her mother a large hug.

"Sierra, we've talked about this. I don't want you to graduate early. Don't you want to experience prom and all the exciting details of your senior year? You're not even a junior."

"I really want to graduate this year. I've gotten all that extra credits for high school because of science camp and I'm a strait A student. There is nothing keeping me to that school. John's a junior so I can go to Junior Prom with him and he and his sister are my only friends in school anyway. It's really not worth sticking around."

"Are you sure about this?"

"Yes. I will be one of the youngest students in school studying to be a brain surgeon but that's ok with me."

"Is there anything I can do to talk you out of it?"

"Nope."

* * *

Caitlyn ran into the living room as the Marcy's day parade began broadcasting to Texas.

_Good morning USA and welcome to the annual Marcy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Today we have a load of talent from all over the United States and don't forget Santa Clause is coming to town for a visit. Stay tuned._

"Payton, Allie the parade's about to start!"

Payton and Allie ran into the room taking the seats on either side of Caitlyn on the couch. This was a tradition for the three since they were very little. No matter where the family got together for the holiday season, the three girls would end up in front of the television set for three hours watching the various parades that were on TV. The Marcy's day parade was by far their favorite. The first time Caitlyn had ever seen Nate as someone of fame was on the Marcy's day parade.

"Did they say who's performing yet?" Payton asked.

"Not yet, probably after the break."

"I heard a rumor that Connect 3 was performing," Allie commented.

Payton and Caitlyn started laughing at this comment.

_Today's parade is starting with a new talent named Mitchie Torres. She is signed with Lava Records, the same label that Connect 3 is on. Without further ado Mitchie Torres._

_Whoo, yeah, yeah, yeah! How to choose who to be. Well let's see, there's so many choices now. Play guitar, be a movie star. In my head, a voice says: Why not? Try everything. Why stop? Reach for any dream. I can rock, 'cause it's my life and now's the time._

_Who will I be? It's up to me. All the never ending possibilities that I can see. There's nothing that I can't do. Who will I be? Yes I believe I get to make the future what I want to. If I can become anyone and know the choice is up to me! Who will I be?_

_If I decide I'm the girl to change the world. I can do it anytime. Opportunity, right in front of me and the choice if all mine. Why not? Try everything. Why stop? Reach for any dream. I can rock  
'cause it's my life and now's the time._

"Wow," Allie said, that is about all she could say.

"She's amazing," Payton added.

"She's my best friend," Caitlyn said brightly.

Allie and Payton's eyes snapped toward Caitlyn.

"For real?" Allie asked.

"Yep."

"Where did you meet her?"

"She goes to Camp Rock High with me. We met this summer during camp and hit it off. She's the one who took me to the C3 concert this fall."

"That's so cool! So what's she like?" Payton asked, already becoming a fan.

"She's really down to earth. She's just like you and me. I mean, her dad is a hardware store owner and her mom's a caterer. She helps in the kitchens to help pay her tuition, but I'm sure that won't be necessary in a year or so. She's really smart; she's been helping me with my math and Spanish homework."

_Up after this commercial break we have Connect 3._

Allie squealed.

"So Cait," Payton started, with the nickname Caitlyn hated, but tolerated from Payton, "this boyfriend of yours, Tyler right? What does he look like?"

Caitlyn thought about this for a second.

_Tyler from Mitchie's home town had strait brown hair and glasses. Should I play that off or should I describe Nate the way he looks for real? I guess if I ever decide to tell them the truth I could just play off that I broke up with Tyler, but that's even more dishonest than I want my relationship with Nate to be._

"He's a little taller than me. He has the most beautiful brown eyes, and curly hair. His style is kinda like Nate's from Connect 3."

"He sounds a lot like Nate," Allie commented.

"Well, maybe that's why Caitlyn found him so attractive in the beginning," Payton countered.

_Welcome back and now Connect 3_

"_This is a little song I wrote for a very special girl in my life. I hope you like it."_

_Every time I think I'm closer to the heart, of what it means to know just who I am, I think I finally found a better place to start. No one ever seems to understand. I need to try to get to where you are. Could it be you're not that far?_

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you, I gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, I gotta find you. Oh yeah. Yeah._

_You're the remedy I'm searching hard to find, to fix the puzzle that I see inside, painting all my dreams the color of your smile. When I find you it will be alright. I need to try to get to where you are. Could it be you're not that far?_

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you, I gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, I gotta find you._

_Been feeling lost, can't find the words to say. Spending all my time stuck in yesterday, cause where you are is where I wanna be. Oh next to you and you next to me. Oh, I need to find you. Yeah._

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you, gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, I gotta find you._

_You're the voice I hear inside my head, the reason that I'm singing. I need to find you, gotta find you. You're the missing piece I need, the song inside of me. I need to find you, gotta find you. Yeah. Gotta find you._

"That's the song you showed us before right?"

"Yea, because Connect 3 is affiliated with Camp Rock they gave us the CD to play with to hear how it would sound with more or less auto tune. They don't use a lot at all to begin with so when you mess with this song, it sounds almost robotic with auto tune."

"Probably doesn't sound like a very serious love song that way does it?" Payton asked.

"Nope. Sounds like a joke."

* * *

Mitchie stepped off the float, but that was just the beginning of the lime-lit day.

"Mitchie, over here."

"Mitchie, smile this way."

"Mitchie, can I get a comment."

"Mitchie, what do you have to say to your fans?"

Mrs. Torres guided Mitchie towards a WGN tent for her first formal interview of the day.

"Now we are being joined my Mitchie Torres. Welcome Mitchie."

Mitchie went over and shook the news caster's hand.

"Thanks, I'm happy to be here."

"So Mitchie that was an amazing song. Who wrote it?"

Mitchie blushed.

"Actually, I wrote it."

"That was fantastic. Mitchie was found by Brown Cesario. Mitchie, how did you get scouted?"

Mitchie smiled, thinking back to the summer.

"I attended Camp Rock this past summer and Brown owns the camp. I don't exactly know when he decided to approach me, but in November he requested a meeting with my parents and here we sit."

"So this process was really fast for you. How are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling fantastic. This is quite different than what I'm used to and there have been a lot of changes in my life over the past few months, but it's all good changes."

"That is very cool. Let's get a couple questions from our audience while you're here with us."

"That sounds great," Mitchie said smiling out to the crowd.

"How old are you?" A little girl in a Connect 3 sweatshirt asked.

"I'm sixteen sweetie. How old are you?" Mitchie asked, excited to see little girls asking her questions.

"Seven."

"Wow, you're a big girl."

The little girl giggled as the microphone was passed to teenage boy.

"Hey Mitchie, you have a great voice and I see you going far. Do you have to go to school?"

Mitchie laughed; clearly the boy was trying to flatter her.

"Yea, I do go to school. I am a full time student and the studio I record at is actually a class period for me every day."

"Well, Mitchie thanks for stopping by. We can't wait to see more of you in the coming months."

"Thanks," Mitchie said with a smile, as she stepped down off the podium.

* * *

_It's so surreal to see Mitchie up on that podium. She's so…poised. It's like she's been doing this as long as Nate, Jason and I have._

Shane smiled up at his beautiful girlfriend as she left the stage.

"You did fantastically," he complimented.

"Really, you think so?"

"Absolutely," Shane said, switching positions with Mitchie on the stairs.

"I'll see you at dinner," Mitchie shouted back as her mother urged her towards another interview.

Shane reached the top of the steps with Nate and Jason right ahead of him.

"Hello guys," the news caster said to the three.

"Hey," Jason replied.

"It's great to see you all again."

"It's great to see you too," Shane replied.

"So I hear you all have had a pretty different year from its start till now."

"You can say that again," Jason said back.

"Shane, I understand you are responsible for the new sound you guys have put together."

"Well, I wouldn't say that. Nate came up with most of the songs on the album, but it was Play My Music that got the record label's attention towards what we wanted the sound to be. I did write that one, but Nate wrote Hello Beautiful and Jason wrote Australia. We all really wanted the change; it just took a lot to get there."

"Shane, you have changed quite a lot in character over the last couple months. A lot of fans have commented on seeing you smile and be excited about your music again. Nate, what is it that you think really made the change in Shane?"

"Well, to be honest…" Nate started, but was interrupted by a fit of coughing, "Sorry, I'm battling quite a cold. As I was saying, the real change has a lot to do with Shane's trip to Camp Rock."

"Yea," Jason said, taking over as Nate fell into another coughing fit, "If it wasn't for the amazing people at Camp Rock we wouldn't be here today."

"That's terrific. So what are you boys doing to celebrate for Thanksgiving here in the Big Apple?" the reporter asked.

"Well, our families are here together so we are going to have a big dinner. We have invited Mitchie Torres and her family as well." Jason replied.

"Mitchie is from Camp Rock as well, did you boys know her before she was signed with the record company?"

"Yea, she was one of my hip-hop students this summer and Nate and Jason met her through our good friend Caitlyn from our time as campers," Shane commented, only slightly bending the truth.

"That's cool. Some of your fans here seem to have some questions for you. Let's take three."

The crowd screamed and all the hands went up.

"What are you guys thankful for this year?" a little girl of about 8 asked.

Shane went first, "I think the thing I am most thankful for is a group of friends and a close family that supports me though all the hard times I have been through lately."

Jason followed, "I am thankful for music, friends and fans who give me the ability to live out my dream."

"I'm thankful for fans and the people I care about most. I'm also thankful for the good health I have had up to this point this year," Nate coughed out.

The next question came from a girl of about 16 years of age.

"Would you guys ever date a fan?"

"Yes," Jason responded immediately, "We hope that the girls we marry are our biggest fans. That way we can continue doing what we love. Most of the girls we have ever dated have liked our music before they met us."

Another 16 year old girl, not being able to contain herself asked, "Are you guys single?"

"We would rather not dive into our personal life," Shane responded with eloquence.

* * *

Caitlyn watched as all of her friends finished their interviews and left the stage.

_Time to call Nate. Maybe I can sneak away from the girls for a little while._

"I'll be back, I gotta call Mitchie and congratulate her," Caitlyn said excusing herself from the couch.

Upon reaching her bedroom, Caitlyn dialed Nate's number.

_Hey you've reached Nate's cell. I'm not here right now so leave your name, number and a brief message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can. BEEP_

"Hey Nate, it's me. I just wanted to call and let you know you did a great job today, even though you couldn't sing, you definitely handled it well. I'm going swimming later with my cousins so I might not answer the phone right away, but I'll talk to you soon. Bye."

Caitlyn quickly dialed Mitchie's number.

_Caitlyn! Happy Thanksgiving!_

"Happy Thanksgiving to you too! You did an amazing job today, absolutely flawless."

_Aw, you're just saying that._

"No really, it was like you were born to perform and that interview, wow. You looked so poised."

_Thanks Caitlyn, you are the best. _

"Yea, I get that a lot."

_Haha. So what are your plans like today? Any chance you're going to surprise us all here tonight?_

"I wish I could, but it looks like I'm going to be here all night and Nate's sick anyway."

_I guess you're right. Maybe it's best that you stay there so you don't get sick. He looks a little better than this afternoon though so hopefully he'll be ok by tomorrow._

"I gotta go Mitchie; my cousins want to go for a swim before their boyfriends get here. I can't believe they're coming to family Thanksgiving, but I guess I have no choice. I'll see you Sunday night."

_See you then._

Caitlyn put down her phone and prepared to go swimming. Texas was in the middle of a heat wave, spiking the temperatures from the low 70s to the mid-80s.

_I'm thankful for warm weather, when I go to a school where the snow has begun to pile up._

After a long afternoon of splashing and giggling between the girls, Caitlyn, Ally and Payton prepared for Thanksgiving dinner.

* * *

Mitchie and her mother had slaved over the stove all afternoon, preparing for dinner with Nate, Jason, Shane and their families.

She had enjoyed her time with her mother. They had not been able to spend much time together after Camp Rock had ended for the summer. Yes, they had their time in the kitchen before all the meals, but Caitlyn occasionally helped and if it wasn't Caitlyn it was Rachel, Alicia or Abigail. Mitchie did not mind sharing her mom with everyone else, especially because they were away from their parents for the year. It was just nice to be alone with her mother for a couple hours.

_Like old times._

'_Sometimes I have good days and it's good to be me, sometimes I get the best of insecurity. And it's quite alright to be the one and only, but today I feel like the one and lonely'_

"Ahhh! Mom it's Sierra!"

"Go ahead and answer it. I think her mom was going to tell her about the new job today. She must have seen you on TV this morning too."

"Sierra!"

_Mitchie! How are you? I miss you so much and I saw you this morning. Is that why you really wanted me to watch the parade? You trickster you! You were absolutely amazing! My mom told me about how she's going to work for you! This is so exciting._

"Oh I'm glad you think so. How are you Sierra? I miss you so much! You really need to visit me more or something."

_I'm doing good. John and Vi are coming over for Thanksgiving dinner tonight and Dad's trying something new with the turkey this year. He's going to try and deep fry it. It's kinda weird not having your family here for Thanksgiving, but that's ok. I'm sure you'll make up for it over Christmas break._

_I've decided to graduate early and start at Arkansas University this spring. I know you wanted me to graduate with our class, and my mom agrees with you, but really all I have is John and Vi here so it's really not worth sticking around. Not to mention that because of the at home tutor I am way ahead of the people that are actually attending school. I'll actually be closer to you too! Isn't that great? Mom will be making the commute to meet with you and Mr. Cesario anyway, so she'll be able to see me. Dad's totally cool with it too, which is kinda weird, but I'll get over it._

"Sierra, that's great! I am so thankful that things are working out for you now. It'll be awesome to have you closer. You can stay at my parent's house every couple weeks for a weekend and we can stay caught up! So, does this mean you're graduating right before Christmas break?"

_Yep. I'll finish up my senior year work right in time for winter break, but I can't take classes at school anymore anyway because I'm too far ahead. I'll just finish up with the tutor and head to school after break. I'll have four weeks off instead of two too._

"That's really cool. I don't even know how long our break is because it's such a different type of school. I'm sure Brown hasn't told us yet because there has been deliberation about it."

_Probably. Hey, do you have Christmas plans? Can we make sure we see each other over break?_

"We will see each other over break even if I'm busy with music stuff. I'll give my mom a couple days off of playing manager and have your mom work with me. Maybe we'll get to have some time in LA. I know Shane would love it if I was by the guys over break. I know we're hosting Christmas though. You and your family should definitely come if you don't have plans. You're like family and with Shane stuck with his folks in Arizona I would love to have you there with me."

_You can count on me. I'll be there for sure._

Mitchie heard several knocks at the door.

"I got to go. Everyone just got here for dinner. I'll talk to you soon."

_Yea, I have to go help mom with the turkey. I'll see you soon…I hope._

Mitchie hung up the phone and went to the door.

"Welcome to the Torres Thanksgiving," she greeted Shane, Nate and Jason's families.

* * *

"MITCHIE!" Alicia yelled, running up to her roommate Sunday night. Mitchie had barely stepped out of the car when she was reached with a large hug.

"ALICIA!" Mitchie greeted back, "How was your break? Did you get to see a lot of family?"

"It was amazing. LA is so beautiful this time of year. I go to go surfing before dinner and we had Thanksgiving dinner on the beach. It was stunning. I don't know why my parents thought it was a bad idea last year."

"That sounds awesome. I'll have to think about that next Thanksgiving. Although, it would be nice to see my family on the next holiday that comes around. Am I the first one back?"

"Caitlyn's bus was delayed because they hit some heavy snow and Abby is flying in with Rachel right before classes tomorrow. I figured you had to be back because of your mom so I came back this morning. I guess, your plane was delayed huh?"

"Yep. Three hours in the NYC airport. At least Shane was delayed too. It let me get a couple more hours with him before we boarded the plane."

"Aren't you going to see him in three weeks for Christmas anyway?"

"Only on a computer screen. His dad wants him home to Arizona for Christmas because he doesn't get to see him much. My parents are hosting here in Arkansas. Not to mention Shane said that his dad doesn't approve of his career, so our relationship is kinda contradictory to that…"

"I'm sorry I brought it up then. Well, three weeks till break. Think that way. Three weeks until all you have to focus on is your album."

"So true," Mitchie said as the girls walked back to the cabin with Mitchie's bags.

* * *

"This is ridiculous. We've been on this bus for five hours… we should be at school by now!"

_Relax Caitlyn. You'll be there soon. It's not the end of the world. You have your computer right?_

"Yea, but the battery only lasts four hours and at the rate we're going it'll die before we get to school."

_Well, then you can call Mitchie. Don't worry, you'll get there soonish._

"Thanks Nate. That sounds really confident."

_Anything for you Caity._

"What are you doing?"

_Wrapping Sarah's Christmas present. Can you believe Christmas is in only three weeks?_

"It's so weird to think it's that soon. What are you doing for Christmas?"

_Well, Shane's going back to Arizona, but Mitchie's hosting a big Christmas thing for Brown, Jason and my family. I think her friend Sierra's coming too. Why?_

"Just wondering. It's the next holiday and I'll be away from you AGAIN."

_It's all good Caitlyn. I've got a plan. You'll see me either Christmas Eve or the day after Christmas. That reminds me, I need to make sure your present gets to you before Christmas day. What's your home address?_

Caitlyn responded with her address and questioned Nate to try and find out what the gift was.

_I can't tell you, but I can say it wouldn't fit in my carry-on._

* * *

**SO? What did you think? Leave lots of comments, good, bad or terrible. I like them all. Thanks for reading!**


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